OC bookie who took bets from Ohtani’s interpreter agrees to plead guilty to federal charges
The Orange County bookmaker who took millions in sports bets from Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges, federal prosecutors announced Thursday, Aug. 1. Mathew Bowyer, 49, of San …
The Orange County bookmaker who took millions in sports bets from Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter has agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges, federal prosecutors announced Thursday, Aug. 1.
Mathew Bowyer, 49, of San Juan Capistrano faces a maximum sentence of 18 years in federal prison on charges of operating an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return. Bowyer, who also took bets from current and former professional athletes, is expected to plead guilty Aug. 9 in federal court.
For at least five years, Bowyer operated an illegal gambling business that at times had more than 700 bettors before it shut down in October, according to the plea agreement.
Among his clients was Ohtani's former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, who admittedly stole nearly $17 million from Ohtani's bank account to pay down more than $40 million in gambling losses to Bowyer. Prosecutors say Mizuhara placed 19,000 bets with Bowyer's operation, which on a regular basis would increase his betting limits.
Mizuhari, who was Ohtani's translator mostly while the superstar was with the Los Angeles Angels, pleaded guilty to one count of bank fraud and one count of filing a false tax return and is scheduled to be sentenced Oct. 25.
Bowyer transferred at least $9.3 million of the money he received from Mizuhara to a casino to pay off markers for himself and his associates, prosecutors said.
Bowyer's other clients included a current member of a Southern California baseball team, identified by prosecutors as "Individual B," and a former minor league baseball player identified as "Individual C."
Prosecutors said Bowyer employed agents and sub-agents, including casino hosts, and operated out of locations in Las Vegas as well as Orange and Los Angeles counties. The employees were paid from the gamblers' losses.
Bowyer used Costa Rica-based websites and a call center where agents and customers could place and track bets. Prosecutors said Bowyer sometimes operated the bookmaking business while gambling at a casino, paying his agents in casino chips.
In his plea agreement, Bowyer admitted to falsifying his 2022 federal tax returns, reporting $607,897 in income but failing to report another $4 million from the illegal gambling business. More than $3.8 million of that money was in the form of wire transfers to one of his bank accounts, which he did not declare, prosecutors said.
Bowyer will face a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison on the money laundering count, up to five years for operating an unlawful gambling business and up to three years for filing a false tax return count, according to prosecutors.
Bowyer has agreed to forfeit $257,923 as well as $14,830 in casino chips seized by law enforcement in October 2023. He also has agreed to fully cooperate in an ongoing federal investigation by IRS Criminal Investigation and Homeland Security.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
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