Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.
Feds recommend 57 months for Mizuhara
In court documents released on Thursday (30 January), US attorneys are recommending a “significant period of incarceration” for former Shohei Ohtani interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. The documents were filed a week ahead of Mizuhara’s 6 February sentencing hearing. Mizuhara bet with an illegal bookmaker and stole $17 million (£13.7 million/€16.3 million) from baseball star Ohtani.
In the documents, Jeff Mitchell, the US attorney leading the government’s case, clearly states that he does not believe that Mizuhara had a long-standing gambling addiction.
Exhibits filed with the case show that Mizuhara started gambling on a legal site, DraftKings, in 2023 after he had “already stolen millions of dollars from Mr Ohtani”. The statements paint Mizuhara as a dishonest thief rather ..
