Getty Image / Ethan Miller
Major news broke on Thursday when the Nevada Gaming Control Board announced that Resorts World Las Vegas is facing a disciplinary complaint.
This in and of itself is major news as large casinos rarely face major disciplinary complaints from the Nevada Gaming Control Board but this particular complaint has ties to MLB All-Star Shohei Ohtani. The complaint alleges that Resorts World Las Vegas allowed illegal bookies and others with ties to illegal gambling to place wagers inside of the Resorts World Casino.
"…felons wagering at Resorts World included Mathew Bowyer, who pleaded guilty in federal court to operating an unlawful gambling business, money laundering, and subscribing to a false tax return…"
Matt Bower was the bookie for Shohei Ohtani's interpreter Ippei Mizuhara. pic.twitter.com/fxpI0Tfpa0
— Las Vegas Locally 🌴 (@LasVegasLocally) August 15, 2024
Among those named in the 12-count complaint were Matthew Bowyer who pleaded guilty in federal court “to operating an unlawful gambling business, money laundering, and subscribing to a false tax return.” Bowyer is also the illegal bookie that was taking bets for Shohei Ohtani’s disgraced interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, who is now working as an Uber Eats driver.
Ippei Mizuhara has since pled guilty for his role in stealing $17 million from Japanese mega-star Shohei Ohtani and using that money on a gambling spree, a crime he faces up to 33 years in federal prison for. He is believed to have placed around 19,000 sports bets between December 2021 and January 2024 before his actions were discovered.
The complaint alleges that Ippei placed about 19,000 bets between December 2021 and January 2024, all with Ohtani's money. The complaint says Ippei won $142,256,769.74 and lost $182,935,206.68, with a total net loss of $40,678,436.94.
— Laura J. Nelson 🦅 (@laura_nelson) April 11, 2024
Resorts World Las Vegas is one of the newest casinos in Sin City, having just opened in 2021. Matthew Bowyer is believed to have lost more than $6.6 million while gambling at Resorts World Las Vegas between July 2022 and October 2023, according to NBC’s 3 News Las Vegas.
In a press release, the Nevada Gaming Control Board announced “The culture within Resorts World created the perception, or the reality in certain circumstances, that Resorts World is an avenue to launder funds derived from illegal activity.” They allege executives at Resorts World either “negligently disregarded” or “willfully ignored for financial gain” while ignoring its anti-money laundering program.
The casino now faces potentially enormous fines and even action against its gaming license, depending on how the investigation plays out. A full PDF of the Nevada Gaming Control Board complaint can be read here.