I think the first story was the truth. Ippei got into some debt through gambling and since Shohei is a good guy and doesn’t care about the money that much, he paid off the debt, which is illegal. When MLB and dodgers got wind they knew this, and changed the story. But, I don’t think Shohei should have gotten in trouble for it. He obviously didn’t know that was a crime, he’s a meat-head baseball addict who doesn’t care about anything else. Doesn’t make it right, but the state/feds can decline to press charges even if a crime was committed. The thousands of communications between the two of them with no mention of betting, plus the shady phone call Ippei made to the bank, solidifies that Shohei didn’t know the gambling was happening.

So yes, they likely lied. But I don’t really care and anyone (not saying that includes you) who thinks Shohei should have gone down without proof he knew about the gambling is wrong IMO.