Mathew Bowyer, Bookie in Shohei Ohtani Scandal, Reflects on Nevada's Black Book and Sports Betting
In April 2026, Mathew Bowyer, a former illegal bookmaker who accepted millions in wagers from Shohei Ohtani's interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara, was placed on Nevada's List of Excluded Persons following his release from prison. The Black Book comprises 36 men and one woman. At 51 years old, Bowyer completed half of a 12-month-and-one-day sentence for charges including illegal gambling, tax fraud, and money laundering, having been incarcerated in 2025. Nevada authorities imposed a $34 million fine on four casinos on the Las Vegas Strip for permitting Bowyer to gamble without confirming his income. Meanwhile, Mizuhara, who embezzled nearly $17 million from Ohtani, is currently serving a 57-month federal prison sentence. Bowyer is a proponent of licensing individual bookmakers to mitigate credit betting.
Key facts
- Mathew Bowyer was added to Nevada's Black Book in April 2026 after serving about half of a 12-month-and-one-day sentence at FCI Lompoc, California.
- Bowyer was the bookmaker for Ippei Mizuhara, who stole nearly $17 million from Shohei Ohtani to pay gambling debts and is serving 57 months in Allenwood, Pennsylvania.
- Nevada regulators fined four Las Vegas Strip casino companies a total of $34 million for allowing Bowyer to gamble without verifying his income sources.
- The Black Book currently contains 36 men and one woman, including Bowyer and fellow California bookmaker Wayne Nix.
- Bowyer pleaded guilty to federal charges of running an illegal gambling business, filing false tax returns, and money laundering before his 2025 imprisonment.
- ESPN reporter Tisha Thompson interviewed Bowyer and Owen Hanson on a Dana Point golf course for the 30 for 30 podcast 'The Betrayal of Shohei Ohtani.'
- Bowyer has written a second book, Controlled Chaos, and launched mathewbowyer.tv to profile every Black Book member.
- Bowyer proposes licensing individual bookmakers with background checks and bonds, claiming it would eliminate 80 percent of credit betting.
Entities
Artists
- Mathew Bowyer
- Owen Hanson
- Tisha Thompson
- Ippei Mizuhara
- Shohei Ohtani
- Mike Trout
- Sam Giancana
- Tony Spilotro
- Frank Rosenthal
- Kendrick L. Weatherspoon
- Wayne Nix
- Mike Dreitzer
- Larry Henry
- Bob Miller
Institutions
- ESPN
- Los Angeles Dodgers
- Los Angeles Angels
- Major League Baseball
- The Mob Museum
- Nevada Gaming Control Board
- Nevada Gaming Commission
- Las Vegas Review-Journal
- KLAS-TV
- MGM Resorts
- Resorts World
- Genting Berhad
- Caesars Palace
- Venetian Las Vegas Gaming LLC
- DraftKings
- FanDuel
- Polymarket
- Kalshi
- 30 for 30
- Princeton
- Las Vegas Sun
- KFSM-TV
- Wikimedia Commons
Locations
- Dana Point
- California
- United States
- Washington, D.C.
- Costa Rica
- Nevada
- Las Vegas
- Allenwood
- Pennsylvania
- Lompoc
- Orange County
- San Diego
- Texas