Credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images
Jennifer Pedranti‘s fiance, Ryan Boyajian, has just found himself in the midst of a major scandal.
According to a new report, the Real Housewives of Orange County cast member who proposed to Jennifer, 46, just last month, was working with the bookkeeper of Ippei Mizuhara, 39, a former Japanese interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers player Shohei Ohtani, 29, when Ippei allegedly stole $16 million of Shohei’s money to pay off his gambling debts.
On May 8, multiple insiders close to the investigation revealed to ESPN that Ryan, 47, was bookkeeper Mathew Bowyer‘s associate and was wired funds from Ippei.
According to the report, Ryan and Mathew, 49, who have been friends and business associates for nearly two decades (Ryan loaned Mathew $245,000 in 2011 when he filed for bankruptcy), used the account for real estate dealings.
In response to being pulled into the criminal complaint filed against Ippei, Steven Katzman, Ryan’s attorney, confirmed to ESPN that Ryan is working with federal authorities.
“Because there is an active investigation and Ryan is working with the authorities, he can’t confirm or deny what is going on,” the lawyer said. “He is not a bookmaker or a sub-bookie.”
While several insiders said that Ryan and Mathew had been frequently seen gambling together at Resorts World Las Vegas and other casinos in the area, often receiving “comps,” including free hotel rooms, food and drinks, and tickets to sporting events, sources also said that Ryan had received immunity in exchange for his testimony.
The report went on to say that Ippei paid his gambling losses to Ryan, who then gave the funds to “marker” accounts at Resorts World Las Vegas and Pechanga Resort Casino in Southern California. He and Mathew then turned the money into chips to gamble with and cashed out if they won.
While Ryan and Mathew both had access to the account Ippei allegedly wired Shohei’s money, Mathew is not believed to have been named in any indictment at this point.
After Deadline shared the news on social media, Ryan’s RHOC co-star and constant critic, Tamra Judge, 56, was quick to respond.
“Do you love it when you are right?” she asked, as seen in a screenshot shared by Queens of Bravo Plus on Instagram.
Tamra also responded to the scandal in the comments section of another post.
“I warned ya!!” she proclaimed, via a screenshot shared by Bravo and Cocktails on Instagram.
The Real Housewives of Orange County season 18 is expected to premiere on Bravo sometime later this year.