VIDEO: Mathew Bowyer, Bookmaker For Shohei Ohtani's Interpreter, On Illegal Sports Betting

Matthew Bowyer, a former illegal bookmaker from Southern California linked to baseball star Shohei Ohtani’s Japanese language interpreter, begins a prison sentence of 12 months and one day on Oct. 10.

A year ago, Bowyer, now 50, pleaded guilty to operating an illegal gambling business, money laundering and filing a false tax return, according to the Associated Press. A U.S. district judge handed down the sentence in August.

In an video interview on Gambling.com’s “The Edge,” Bowyer, a self-described “degenerate gambler,” noted that, while banned from every U.S. casino, he is looking to turn his life around. His book, “Recalibrate,” describes the journey from heavy gambling and illegal bookmaking to his prison sentence and goals beyond that.

During the interview, Bowyer provides insight into the world of illegal gambling.

'Friction Could Lead To Violence'

Bowyer’s arrest and conviction were part of a federal investigation into illegal sports gambling, the AP reported, leading to the imprisonment of Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s interpreter. Mizuhara is serving a sentence of nearly five years “for bank and tax fraud after stealing nearly $17 million from from Ohtani," according to the AP. Bowyer was Mizuhara's bookmaker.

Considered one of the top players in Major League Baseball, Ohtani, now with the defending World Series-champion Los Angeles Dodgers, formerly played for the Los Angeles Angels. The league cleared Ohtani of wrongdoing, declaring him to be a victim of fraud.

During the video interview on “The Edge,” Bowyer discusses:

• How he met Ohtani’s interpreter at a hotel poker game involving Major League Baseball players, coaches and others, including Mizuhara. “I knew who he was obviously, and he was putting a sports bet on his telephone. … A friend of mine proceeded to have a conversation with him and pointed out that that's what I did for a living. And so that's when the relationship started, basically.”
• Whether Ohtani know about the betting. “I do feel that he did nothing wrong. I just want to be clear on that.”
• The downside to illegal sports betting. ”It’s going to cause friction when people can't pay because it's credit based, and that friction could lead to violence.”

More On Sports Betting

For more on illegal sports betting, click here for an interview on "The Edge" with Owen Hanson, subject of the Amazon Prime Video docuseries "Cocaine Quarterback."

Currently, sports betting is legal in 38 states and Washington, D.C.