Wander Franco arrested after fight in Dominican Republic

Police in the Dominican Republic have arrested Wander Franco, authorities confirmed The athleteafter he was involved in a fight in a parking lot on Sunday.

Authorities are investigating the incident, a ministry spokesman said. A Dominican police spokesman told the Associated Press that two firearms had been seized. According to the AP, in addition to Franco, another man and a woman were arrested.

The athlete Franco’s lawyer has reached out for comment. ESPN first reported details of the incident.

Franco, 23, was ordered in September to stand trial in a separate case involving sexual abuse, sexual exploitation of minors and human trafficking. That process is scheduled to begin on December 12, according to multiple reports. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison.

Videos distributed by media in the Dominican Republic showed the confrontation on Sunday in a parking lot in San Juan de la Maguana, a city about 180 kilometers west of the country’s capital Santo Domingo.

Franco has not played in Major League Baseball since August 12, 2023, when allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a minor surfaced. According to prosecutors’ statements and statements from the girl and other family members, Franco paid the girl’s mother thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts in exchange for the mother’s consent to have a sexual relationship with her daughter. The girl’s mother also has to answer in court.

Franco was placed on the MLB restricted list in July, meaning he will not be paid or accrue service time. He was previously on administrative leave.

MLB is also investigating Franco and he could still be suspended under the league’s policies on domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse.

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(Photo: Mark Taylor/Getty Images)