Bookmaker tied to ex-Ohtani interpreter gets 1-year sentence

SANTA ANA, Calif. — An illegal bookmaker who took thousands of bets from the former interpreter of Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani was sentenced Friday to just over a year in prison.

U.S. District Judge John W. Holcomb gave Mathew Bowyer a prison sentence of 12 months and one day and two years of supervised release. He also ordered Bowyer to attend gambling addiction counseling and to surrender to authorities by Oct. 10. Bowyer paid $1.6 million in restitution before the sentencing.

Bowyer, 50, pleaded guilty in August 2024 to running an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return.

The tax-related crime “is significant and needs to be taken into account,” Holcomb said. “Justice demands there be some custody time.”

Prosecutors said in a court filing before the sentencing that they sought a lighter sentence of 15 months for Bowyer because of his assistance in securing convictions against Ohtani’s ex-interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, and another Southern California bookmaker.

Bass asked Judge Holcomb to sentence Bowyer to home confinement, arguing that Bowyer’s crime has no victims beyond the government and that he is in recovery from a gambling addiction. She said that Bowyer did not know that Mizuhara was stealing from Ohtani to pay his gambling debts and that she was concerned that the media interest in the case would work against her client.

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“He did not think he was taking advantage of anyone,” Bass said. “We didn’t know it was going to be a high-profile case… then all of a sudden there is this huge media interest.”

Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen A. Williams pointed to the societal harm of Bowyer’s crime and that his case was not “simply about an addict who got into trouble.”

“He’s going out and talking to news media, talking about Mr. Mizuhara, the business he was in, there is a certain amount of notoriety that he is enjoying,” Williams told the court.

In a press conference after the hearing, Bowyer apologized to Ohtani. “If I were to see Shohei Ohtani, I would tell him I’m sorry that his name has a slight tarnish to it just being involved in this case,” he said. “At the end of the day, he’s an innocent guy just playing baseball and performing at the highest level.”

“Real Housewives of Orange County” cast member Ryan Boyajian, Bowyer’s associate who received the wire transfers from Ohtani’s bank account, attended the sentencing, along with Bowyer’s family and friends. ESPN previously reported that Boyajian received immunity in return for his testimony. Boyajian declined to comment Friday.

Bowyer operated a large-scale gambling business over many years and had more than 700 clients, according to court filings. Mizuhara began placing bets with Bowyer after they met at a poker game in San Diego in 2021. Mizuhara went on to make at least 19,000 wagers between December 2021 and January 2024, lost nearly $41 million and stole almost $17 million from Ohtani to pay his debts.

Bowyer told ESPN he knew within 30 days that Mizuhara was a problem gambler because of the frequency and type of bets he was making.

“He definitely was betting all night long, all the time,” Bowyer said. “I’ve never seen anything like it. $100,000 on a draw, Ukraine vs. Turkey. $100,000 on Saudi Arabia.”

Mizuhara’s behavior was uncovered in March 2024 after ESPN began asking questions about millions in wire transfers being sent from Ohtani’s bank account to Bowyer’s operation.

Mizuhara is currently serving a 57-month sentence at FCI Allenwood Low, a low-security prison in Pennsylvania.