Tag - gambling

 
 

GAMBLING

Philippine authorities discovered at least three scam farms run by Chinese, Indonesian and Myanmar nationals, according a spokesman or the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 1, 2024
Philippines arrests over 150 foreigners in online gambling raid
Agents found dozens of people engaged in illegal activities on makeshift workstations inside a resort on the central island of Cebu.
Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Shohei Ohtani, outside a U.S. federal court in Santa Ana, California, in June
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 2, 2024
Bookmaker in Shohei Ohtani interpreter case to plead guilty
Bookmaker Mathew Bowyer worked with Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani's ex-interpreter and friend, who admitted to taking Ohtani's money to cover his gambling debts.
Devices used in a scam center in Manila that has been shut down by police. Scam centers have mushroomed across Southeast Asia, with crime syndicates luring, kidnapping or coercing workers into predatory online activity and raking in billions of dollars.
ASIA PACIFIC / Crime & Legal
Jul 25, 2024
Raid on Philippine gambling hub unravels elaborate scheme implicating mayor
The scandal has fueled calls for a ban on the online gambling industry over its links to financial scams, kidnapping, prostitution, human trafficking, torture and murder.
Tucupita Marcano, then with the Pirates, throws to first base during a game against the Giants in Pittsburgh in July last year.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 5, 2024
San Diego Padres infielder Tucupita Marcano banned for life for gambling
Michael Kelly, a pitcher for the Oakland Athletics, and three minor league players were also suspended for a year for gambling on baseball games, MLB said.
Thailand is the latest nation to consider competing for a pie of the global casino industry, which IBIS World estimates generated $263.3 billion in revenue last year.
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 5, 2024
Thailand plans bill to legalize casinos, spokesman says
Any opening of casinos will be in line with its recent embrace of a more liberal landscape to revive its tourism industry.
Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for Shohei Ohtani, outside a U.S. federal court in Santa Ana, California, on Tuesday
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 5, 2024
Ohtani's ex-interpreter pleads guilty to stealing nearly $17 million
Ippei Mizuhara admitted to one count of bank fraud, which carries a maximum 30-year prison sentence, and one count of filing a false tax return.
Atlanta Braves second baseman David Fletcher throws for a double play against the Miami Marlins in Cumberland, Georgia, on April 23.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 21, 2024
MLB investigates ex-Angels infielder David Fletcher over gambling claims
Fletcher reportedly wagered through Matthew Bowyer, the same bookmaker who took bets from Ippei Mizuhara.
Ippei Mizuhara, the former interpreter for baseball star Shohei Ohtani, leaves federal court in Los Angeles on Tuesday.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 15, 2024
Ohtani interpreter appears in court over $17 million fraud
A lawyer for Ippei Mizuhara said the 39-year-old has reached a deal with prosecutors over his charges.
Ippei Mizuhara, seen during Shohei Ohtani's introductory news conference with the Dodgers in December 2023, has agreed to plead guilty to charges of bank fraud and filing a false tax return.
BASEBALL / MLB
May 9, 2024
Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter to plead guilty to bank fraud
Mizuhara agreed to plead guilty to one count of felony bank fraud and one count of filing a false tax return.
Raptors center Jontay Porter during a game against the Pistons in March. Porter wagered money on his own team to lose, pretended to be hurt for betting purposes and shared confidential information with gamblers, leading to a lifetime ban from the NBA.
MORE SPORTS
Apr 21, 2024
In latest gambling scandal, some see glimpse of sports’ future
There are those who worry that recent sports gambling scandals are just the tip of the iceberg.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani during a spring training game on March 12.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 15, 2024
Ohtani’s dizzying three weeks end in exoneration by authorities
At times, baseball’s biggest star seemed in danger of being tainted by a gambling scandal, before his longtime interpreter was charged with fraud.
Ippei Mizuhara, the 39-year-old former interpreter for Japanese baseball star Shohei Ohtani, was ordered released on $25,000 bond after his first court appearance to face a bank fraud charge accusing him of stealing $16 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers star to cover illegal gambling expenses.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 13, 2024
Ohtani's ex-interpreter issues apology after release on $25,000 bond
Ippei Mizuhara was released on bond after appearing in court on a bank fraud charge accusing him of stealing $16 million to cover illegal gambling debts.
Ippei Mizuhara and Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani attend a news conference ahead of MLB's season-opening series in Seoul on March 16.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 12, 2024
Texts between Ippei Mizuhara and bookie show the walls closing in
Federal prosecutors say Ippei Mizuhara stole $16 million from Shohei Ohtani from November 2021 to January 2024.
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani and his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, in December at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California
BASEBALL
Apr 12, 2024
How Ippei Mizuhara allegedly wired millions from Shohei Ohtani’s account
Crucially for Ohtani, a U.S. investigation clearly paints him as a victim without any involvement in or knowledge of his interpreter's gambling woes.
Shohei Ohtani with then-interpreter Ippei Mizuhara during a news conference in Los Angeles in December
BASEBALL
Apr 12, 2024
Prosecutors say Ohtani’s interpreter stole $16 million from star
The account provided by authorities largely confirms what Ohtani told the public in late March.
Ippei Mizuhara (left) allegedly stole millions of dollars from Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani in order to cover gambling debts.
BASEBALL
Apr 11, 2024
Ippei Mizuhara, Shohei Ohtani’s former interpreter, said to be negotiating guilty plea
By quickly pleading guilty, Mizuhara would increase his chances of receiving a more lenient sentence.
Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani singles during the fifth inning against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Saturday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 7, 2024
MLB commissioner says Ohtani and interpreter gambling probe to wrap up in 'short' time
The top MLB official also praised the Los Angeles Dodgers superstar for his move to stem questions over his involvement in the scandal.
A petition filed by a Ukrainian serviceman pointed to the dangers of troops — often whiling away long hours outside of combat — spending chunks of their monthly wage on online gambling platforms on the mobile phones.
WORLD
Apr 4, 2024
Ukraine tackles gambling addiction within its military ranks
A Ukrainian parliamentary committee will meet Thursday to discuss draft legislation imposing stricter controls over the gambling industry.
Shohei Ohtani's response, or lack thereof, to the gambling scandal sheds light on the cultural differences in crisis management between Japan and the West.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 2, 2024
Ohtani swings and misses at PR, but he’s not Japan’s first
Shohei Ohtani's response, or lack thereof, to a gambling scandal sheds light on the cultural differences in crisis management between Japan and the West.
People place their bets at the Fanduel sportsbook in East Rutherford, New Jersey, during the Super Bowl in February 2019.
MORE SPORTS
Mar 31, 2024
U.S. sports leagues bet on gambling. Now they’re facing its risks.
Leagues have signed lucrative marketing deals with betting apps like FanDuel and DraftKings and recent incidents have highlighted issues.

Longform

A store clerk tries to cool things down in front of their shop by spraying a hose.
Is extreme weather changing the way Japan shops?