OJ's Cultural Legacy, Ukraine's Mobilization Law, Ohtani's Ex-Translator Charged

the century.

We'll remember the complicated life and legacy he leaves.

That's A. Martinez, and this is Up First from NPR News.

Russia tried to conquer Kiev with military might.

That didn't work.

But its war of attrition is exhausting Ukrainian troops.

Now Ukraine's government is preparing to draft hundreds of thousands more military-age men.

bank fraud, $16 million worth, all to pay off gambling debts.

Stay with us.

We'll give you all the news you need to start your day.

It feels like the passing of O.J. Simpson closed a chapter in Los Angeles history, one

though that still leaves a sense that there is still a lot that will never be resolved.

Last century, he was a famous and infamous figure as an athlete, an actor, and a murder suspect.

Simpson saga in the 1990s.

Manalit, before the freeway chase, before the so-called trial of the century, O.J. was

already famous in so many ways.

You know, O.J. Simpson started off as a star football player at USC, earning a Heisman

trophy.

Then he went on to be a running back in the NFL and a sports commentator.

He was handsome and with a famously great smile.

And after his football career in Hollywood ate him up, he starred in commercials, sprinting

through airports.

He was in the TV series, Roots.

And he had parts in movies like The Towering Inferno and The Naked Gun Comedies.

Police!

And that's why it was so shocking what came next.

Now, that next is becoming the number one suspect in the murders of his ex-wife, Nicole

Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman.

That was 1994.

Manalit, you covered that story for NPR.

It was just a huge deal.

It was huge.

And listeners may remember, you probably remember, after Simpson became a wanted man, he went

missing and then he emerged as a passenger in a white Ford Bronco on the freeways of

Los Angeles, getting chased by police.

95 million people were transfixed by the slow car chase that was broadcast live on national

television.

Here's a clip from a CNN special with Eric Spillman from KTLA.

People have pulled over.

Some people saw Simpson as a sort of folk hero on the run.

And as a reporter, I don't think I had a cell phone then, but I followed the helicopters

to his mansion where a crowd of people had gathered, some with kids on their shoulders,

to see what would happen next.

Simpson sat in his car in the driveway, pointing a gun to his head, and he eventually surrendered.

OJ was in the back the whole time.

And then there was his murder trial the following year, which was another huge media moment.

to the TV to watch it unfold live.

Everyone involved became a pop culture icon, the judge, the prosecutors, and Simpson's

lawyers, including Robert Kardashian, father to the now famous Kardashian family.

Also, his showy attorney, Johnny Cochran, he famously asked Simpson to try wearing once

bloody gloves found at the crime scene.

Here's Cochran in his closing argument.

It doesn't fit.

If it doesn't fit, you must acquit.

I'm going to lead to the reaction to that moment was very telling.

I interviewed some liberal white Angelenos who were outraged.

Here's a retired Hollywood accountant named Al.

NPR agreed at the time not to use his last name.

The guy is as guilty as sin.

Some told me that whether or not Simpson killed his ex-wife, they felt that for once justice

was on the side of an African-American man.

Here's a clip from Al Humphreys, a former sheriff's deputy.

a lot of dead black folks that nobody ever went to jail for.

Well, O.J. lived nearly 30 more years after all that.

How relevant was he the rest of his life?

He served nine years in a Las Vegas prison for an armed robbery and kidnapping at a hotel.

And the last time I saw O.J. Simpson in person, he was signing autographs at a horror film

convention at a suburban strip mall.

And I thought that might be the last we heard from him.

But in 2016, there was a highly acclaimed TV miniseries about his trial and a documentary

about him that won an Oscar.

O.J. Simpson remained a fascinating and a complicated figure.

That's NPR's Manalit Delbarco in Los Angeles.

Manalit, thanks.

has not.

Ukrainian soldiers are exhausted.

So after months of deliberation, Ukraine's parliament has adopted a law to mobilize hundreds

of thousands of new soldiers.

Joanna, it can't be good for a country trying to win a war that they would need more troops

as soon as possible.

Tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in this war.

Tens of thousands more have been injured.

Russia has more resources, four times the population, and it's trying to win by wearing

down the Ukrainian military.

Some Ukrainian troops have been on the front line for months, up to two years.

And to make matters worse, the Ukrainians don't have enough artillery shells to fight

back or air defense missiles to protect themselves.

The Russians are also dropping these guided bombs from fighter jets that are just destroying

Ukrainian defenses.

How would it do that?

They would be required at all times to carry draft registration documents, so conscripts

would be easier to find.

If they don't, they could lose privileges, like they would be banned from driving.

And lawmakers are also considering imposing fines for draft dodgers in a separate bill.

Any carrots here?

The law also offers incentives to men who volunteer for service.

For example, they can get certificates to buy a car or put down mortgage payments on

a house.

And in one controversial move, the bill also would allow convicts to serve in return for

a suspended sentence.

Previously, convicts were banned from military service.

Does this law address that issue?

Though lawmakers are considering a separate law about that, and, you know, long deployments

with no end, that is what people seem to be most upset about when we speak with them.

Families of soldiers are concerned that they're fighting for so long, and like I said, for

two years without a real break, that some of these soldiers are forced to fight with

injuries.

Katerina talked about her godfather, who's been stationed near the Russian border.

He was hospitalized after getting hurt in action and told he can't convalesce for more

than two months.

She's saying he's expected to return to where he was stationed at the border, even if he

doesn't entirely recover from his wounds.

It does not matter if he's healed, because they need him on the front line.

What about the young men who could maybe be drafted?

And Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently signed another law that lowered the

conscription age from 27 to 25.

Denis told us that he's ready to serve, but that he too worries about whether he will

ever get a break.

He said there seems to be no end to this war, and it's incredibly hard to be on the front

line all the time, for months at a time, with no end.

Why are younger men in Ukraine exempted?

Ukraine has a very low birth rate, a drastic decline in birth rates since the USSR's collapse.

And if Ukraine recruits a lot of young men, it risks decimating an entire generation.

Thanks.

today after being charged with bank fraud.

all because he had run up massive gambling debt.

prosecutors announced the charges yesterday.

So tell us more about these charges.

I mean, bank fraud is pretty serious stuff.

Bank fraud is a felony offense that can carry a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison.

Federal prosecutors say Mizuhara illegally transferred money from Ohtani's bank account

to bookies.

They say he began gambling back in 2021, placing bets in sports, but not on baseball.

And according to the complaint, they say to pay off his debt, Mizuhara siphoned off more

than $16 million from Ohtani's account.

They also believe he spent about $325,000 of Ohtani's money on baseball cards purchased

through websites like eBay and whatnot.

Because I'm not sharing my account with my friends.

speak English.

And prosecutors say that Mizuhara acted as his translator, but also his de facto manager.

They say that Mizuhara helped Ohtani set up a bank account and that he later used that

information to change the phone number and email address associated with the account.

That's how they say he gained access to it.

Here's one of the prosecutors, U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada.

lied to them about being Mr. Ohtani, gave personal biographical information for Mr.

Ohtani in order to impersonate him, and thereby convinced the bank to approve large wire transfers

of large amounts of money to the bookmakers.

accountant, and financial advisor, from gaining access to the account.

None of them speak Japanese.

We did reach out to Mizuhara's attorney for comment, and he declined.

All right.

with them.

And U.S. Attorney Estrada said yesterday that Ohtani is a victim in this case.

He's not only spoken to investigators, he's provided access to his digital devices, to

his personal information, to ensure that justice was done in this case.

and that they haven't found any evidence that he knew about or was involved in Mizuhara's

gambling.

Major League Baseball had initially said they'd launched a probe into the gambling incident,

but after Thursday's announcement, they said they'd wait until the criminal case is complete.

And Mizuhara is supposed to surrender at the courthouse later today, right?

It's supposed to be a brief hearing.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says he won't be asked to enter a plea to the bank fraud charge.

Then they anticipate he'd be released on bond.

Thank you very much.

I'm Ami Martinez.

Your next listen is Consider This from NPR with their take on O.J.

Simpson.

His murder trial became not only about one man and two victims, but the entire country.

Listen to Consider This.

Lisa Thompson, and Ben Adler.

It was produced by Ziad Butch, Ben Abrams, and Nina Kravinsky.

We've got engineering support from Stacey Abbott, and our technical director is Zach

Coleman.

And don't forget, Up First drops on Saturdays, too.

Join Scott Simon and Ayesha Roscoe right here in this feed.

And join us again here on Monday with all the news you need to start the week.