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Shohei Ohtani holds first news conference on gambling allegations against interpreter
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Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani addressed the media on Monday afternoon for the first time since the team fired his interpreter Ippei Mizuhara amid gambling allegations.
“I am very sad and shocked that someone who I trusted has done this,” Ohtani said through an interpreter.
He vehemently denied agreeing to pay off Mizuhara’s gambling debt and betting on baseball or any other sports.
“I never bet on baseball or any sports or never have asked somebody to do it on my behalf,” Ohtani said. “I have never went through a bookmaker to bet on sports.”
KCAL News
Major League Baseball opened a formal investigation after the Dodgers fired Mizuhara amid the allegations. The interpreter is accused of stealing at least $4.5 million from Ohtani’s personal bank account. Mizuhara had worked as Ohtani’s interpreter since 2017, before Ohtani joined the Los Angeles Angels, his first team in the MLB. Mizuhara’s relationship with the two-way star has been well documented during Ohtani’s tenure with the Angels, with whom he played for six seasons before signing a 10-year, $700 million mega-deal with the Dodgers.
Mizuhara told ESPN that Ohtani was aware of the gambling debts, and that while disappointed, he had agreed to pay them off. However, a spokesperson for Ohtani told ESPN that the player was not in fact aware of the gambling.
“Ippei has been stealing money from my accounts and has been telling lies,” Ohtani said.
The story first broke last Wednesday when the Dodgers fired Mizuhara while the team was in Seoul, South Korea, for the season-opening series against the San Diego Padres. Ohtani said he learned about the gambling after the first game of the two-game series.
Ohtani said the Dodgers held a meeting in the clubhouse when Mizuhara addressed the entire team. Since Mizuhara spoke in English, Ohtani said he did not understand the entire speech but felt something was “amiss.” Afterward, the pair had a one-on-one meeting in the hotel.
“Up until that meeting, I did not know Ippei had a gambling addiction and was in debt,” he said. “Obviously, at that point I never agreed to pay off the debt or make payments to the bookmaker.”
According to Ohtani, during the meeting, Mizuhara admitted to using the player’s account to pay off the bookmaker.
Ohtani said he contacted his representatives after.
“My lawyers recommended that since this is theft and fraud that we have the proper authorities handle this matter,” he said.
Ohtani added that he will let his lawyers handle the matter but will assist “in all investigations” that are taking place right now.”
In addition to the internal investigation by the MLB, the Internal Revenue Service and the United States Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles launched probes into the allegations. The federal organizations said they had no comment on the matter.
The alleged gambling organization and bookmaker, Matthew Bowyer, are under federal investigation in a case that also includes former Dodger Yasiel Puig, who faces multiple charges.
“I’m looking forward to focusing on the season,” he said. “I’m glad we had this opportunity to talk, and I’m sure there’ll be continuing investigations moving forward.”
CBS News
Telegram CEO Pavel Durov arrested at airport near Paris, French media reports
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French police arrested Telegram CEO and founder Pavel Durov on Saturday at an airport near Paris for alleged offences related to the popular messaging app, French media reported.
The French-Russian billionaire, 39, was detained at Le Bourget airport north of the French capital on Saturday evening, one of the officials told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity.
French television news outlets TF1 TV and BFM TV also reported the arrest, citing unnamed sources, according to Reuters.
He had just travelled from Baku, in Azerbaijan, another source close to the case told AFP.
Durov was expected to appear in court on Sunday.
Manuel Blondeau/AOP.Press/Corbis via Getty Images
Telegram did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters for comment, and the French Interior Ministry and French police had no comment either.
France’s OFMIN, an agency tasked with preventing violence against minors, had issued an arrest warrant for Durov as the coordinating agency in a preliminary investigation into alleged offences including fraud, drug trafficking, cyberbullying, organized crime and promotion of terrorism, one of the sources close to the case told AFP.
Durov is suspected of failing to take action to curb the criminal use of his platform.
“Enough of Telegram’s impunity,” said one of the investigators, adding they were surprised Durov came to Paris knowing he was a wanted man.
Durov started Telegram in 2013 and left Russia in 2014 after he was ousted from VKontakte — a popular social networking site in Russia which he-cofounded — after being pressured by the Kremlin to hand over users’ personal data, which he refused to do.
In a 2016 interview with “60 Minutes,” Durov said he was “horrified” when he learned that Telegram — which was designed to be heavily encrypted so that governments cannot access users’ personal data — was being used by terrorist groups like the Islamic State to communicate.
“I’m personally for the privacy side,” Durov said in that interview when asked whether privacy concerns outweighed security risks. “But one thing that should be clear is that you cannot make just one exception for law enforcement without endangering private communications of hundreds of millions of people because encryption is either secure or not.”
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California experiences rare August snowfall in Sierra Nevada Mountains near Mammoth
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A rare dusting of summer snowfall happened in the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California overnight.
The snow was spotted by a deputy in Eastern Madera County at Minaret Vista, who posted the video to their Facebook page on Saturday, August 24.
Madera County Sheriff’s Office
“While it’s rare to see snow this time of year, it’s a reminder of the unpredictable nature of our beautiful Sierra Nevada. If you’re planning to visit, please drive carefully and be prepared for the chilly weather,” according to the Madera County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.
Snow was also recorded at the top of The Summit at Mammoth Mountain, which is 11,053 feet.
“This morning was chill. Take a look at the dusting of new snow on the mid and upper-mountain,” said officials at Mammoth Mountain on Instagram.
You could also see the snow on Mammoth Mountain’s live webcam page.
The National Weather Service sent out an alert to hikers and campers in the area to be prepared for winter conditions, including slick roads.
CBS News
Group leads nationwide effort to track antisemitic threats
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