Shohei Ohtani, the formidable baseball player who recently clinched a World Series win and earned the National League MVP title with the Los Angeles Dodgers, is now embroiled in a legal battle. Ohtani is striving to reclaim a staggering $325,000 worth of baseball cards that were unlawfully obtained by his former interpreter and close associate, Ippei Mizuhara. This Tuesday, Ohtani took his case to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, seeking to regain possession of the sought-after sports cards snatched from Mizuhara by law enforcement. A crucial hearing on this matter has been scheduled for December 20.
The murky saga traces back to Mizuhara’s admission of guilt in June, where he came clean about committing bank and tax fraud, swindling Ohtani out of a whopping $17 million. Between January and March of 2024, Mizuhara surreptitiously funneled funds from Ohtani’s bank account to snap up baseball cards from renowned platforms like eBay and Whatnot, with the intention of flipping them for a profit. Ohtani is adamant that these cards were purchased using his money and therefore rightfully belong to him.
In a compelling twist to the narrative, Ohtani informed the court about “a quantity of personally signed collectible baseball cards” featuring his likeness that were discovered amidst Mizuhara’s possessions and erroneously confiscated. As part of his plea to the court, Ohtani is requesting the return of these items.
The items seized by authorities from Mizuhara’s possession are detailed in court documents as follows:
– Collectible sports cards stashed in silver and black Panopply cases
– Collectible sports cards housed in gray Panopply cases
– A container holding additional collectible sports cards
– A device used for wrapping cards
– Plastic protectors for cards
Mizuhara’s plummet from grace was triggered by his unauthorized access to Ohtani’s bank account, precipitating his dismissal by the Dodgers in March upon the exposure of his fraudulent activities. Initially scheduled for October 25 and later rescheduled to December 20, Mizuhara’s sentencing has now been pushed further to January 24.
The pivotal December 20 hearing will ascertain whether Ohtani can reclaim ownership of the confiscated sports cards. This legal maneuver represents a fresh chapter in the aftermath of Mizuhara’s betrayal of the trust bestowed upon him by one of baseball’s most eminent figures.
