Ippei to plead guilty to bank fraud and filing a false tax return:
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...-pleads-guilty
And now a new name enters this whole thing...
Ryan Boyajian, 47, was the person listed as "Associate 1" in the indictment against Ippei. Boyajian was the associate of bookmaker Matthew Bowyer who received money from Ippei.
In turn, Boyajian would forward the money directly into front money accounts of his at Resorts World and Pechanga. He would then gamble at high stakes, either losing it all, or cashing out if he won. Bowyer would also gamble with some of this money. It was believed that this was a money laundering operation, where the illegal bookmaking proceeds would then be seen as "clean" funds coming from the casino.
Disgraced former Resorts World CEO Scott Sibella is believed to have looked the other way while Boyajian did this.
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...gambling-money
And apparently this entire situation has shone a spotlight on the entire issue regarding illegal bookies laundering money though Vegas casinos, especially Resorts World: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...e-vegas-casino
Surprised to find out he is 30 thought early 20s , man lot of degens though.
The full breadth of this Ohtani/Ippei scandal is not gonna be contained
Idk maybe this is out of jurisdiction
Have they hired Micon's attorney yet?
It seems the anti gambling laws for pro athletes is a bit over the top.
BUMP
Damien Laforbes, aka DJ, who appeared a lot on PokerGo and Hustler Casino Live has pled guilty to helping Matt Bowyer launder money at Resorts World.
https://twitter.com/ToddWitteles/status/1828824124866904299
There was an update on this story on the news tonight- starting federal prison sentence tomorrow. But I can’t find a new link on this.
Not tonight, but there was an update in February.Originally Posted by desertrunner
Mizuhara got 57 months: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...n-ohtani-fraud
But there was an update on the KTLA news tonight on this story. Thats how I knew to search for and bump it up.Not tonight, but there was an update in February.
Mizuhara got 57 months: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...n-ohtani-fraud
yeah he is to surrender himself today and start the prison term...
Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Shohei Ohtani, is scheduled to surrender to authorities Monday and begin his federal prison sentence on charges related to stealing nearly $17 million from the Dodgers star baseball player to pay gambling debts.
https://mynewsla.com/crime/2025/03/2...ntence-monday/
BUMP
Related matter, now dogging Fontainebleau, involving DJ Leforbes: https://vegascasinotalk.com/forum/sh...-quot-Leforbes
I used to see DJ around Gardens casino a lot. He didn't play very much poker that I saw. Just kind of walked around and socialized a lot, pretty much exclusively around the high limit games. Guess him being a high end bookie explains what he was doing.
The Krakman interviews the bookie. I thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing. I recommend
Bowyer pled guilty and got a lenient 1-year sentence.
He cooperated with the feds against Mizuhara and Leforbes:
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/...-year-sentence
https://nevadacurrent.com/briefs/fed...s-interpreter/
He starts his sentence on October 10. In the meantime, here he is on X talking about reinventing himself:
https://twitter.com/mathewbowyer5/status/1974664160811298960
Well, now at least I can tell my baseball fan friends that I've interacted with Shohei Ohtani's bookie...
https://twitter.com/mathewbowyer5/status/1974666977349337521
https://twitter.com/mathewbowyer5/status/1974667430397157707
Caesars Palace fined $7.8 million over gambling by bookmaker linked to Ohtani's interpreter
https://abc7.com/post/caesars-palace...eter/18192504/
Nevada gaming regulators voted to fine Caesars Palace $7.8 million Thursday over failing to comply with anti-money laundering rules, settling a case that centered on an illegal bookmaker with ties to the former interpreter for the baseball star Shohei Ohtani.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board alleged that Caesars Palace failed to verify bookmaker Mathew Bowyer's source of funds as he gambled millions of dollars between 2017 and 2024, despite suspicions being raised on several occasions and an anonymous tip that Bowyer was a bookie.
It's the third casino to be fined at least partly in relation to Bowyer's activity; a $10.5 million stipulated fine handed to the Resorts World casino earlier this year was the second-largest ever from the gaming board.
Caesars executives said their systems for catching such behavior had failed.
"There is no customer that's worth illegitimate profits. We didn't catch Bowyer and we should have," Tom Reeg, the CEO of Caesars Entertainment, said at Thursday's hearing.
Bowyer pleaded guilty to federal charges in 2024, which included running an illegal gambling business and money laundering. Prosecutors said Bowyer took bets from hundreds of people, including Ohtani's former interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara.
Mizuhara - who translated for the Japanese athlete - was sentenced in federal court earlier this year to five years in prison for bank and tax fraud after he stole nearly $17 million from Ohtani's bank account.
The settlement between Caesars Palace and the Gaming Control Board includes requirements for the casino company to better ensure compliance with anti-money laundering laws, including more training for staff.
"The way our (anti-money laundering) program operated in this instance was unacceptable," said Gary Carano, the executive chairman of Caesars Entertainment's board of directors, at the hearing. "We will do everything possible to prevent this from coming before you ever again."
Earlier this year, MGM Resorts International was fined $8.5 million for actions related to Bowyer and another bookmaker, the Nevada Independent reported.
MGM Resorts International and Resorts World did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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