A Dominican court has convicted 10 people involved in the 2019 attempted murder of Hall of Famer David Ortiz, authorities confirmed Tuesday.
Ortiz, a native of the Dominican Republic, was shot by a man who got off his motorcycle and shot him in the back at close range while the former Red Sox player was in a bar with friends in an affluent neighborhood from Santo Domingo.
Two men, including alleged shooter Rolfi Ferreyra Cruz, were each sentenced to 30 years in prison by the First Collegiate Court of Santo Domingo.
Eight others received prison sentences ranging from 5 to 20 years. Three other defendants were acquitted for lack of evidence, including Víctor Hugo Gómez Vásquez, who was accused of planning the attack.
American private investigators hired by Ortiz said the sloth known affectionately as Big Papi was targeted by a Dominican drug dealer who was jealous of him.
The findings by former Boston Police Commissioner Edward Davis contradicted an earlier theory by law enforcement in the Dominican Republic that the hitman was hired to shoot Ortiz’s cousin, Sixto David Fernandez, who was sitting at the same table.
Dominican authorities said the killers mistook Fernandez for Ortiz, one of the country’s most beloved baseball players.
A fearsome power hitter with a ready smile, Ortiz led the Red Sox to three World Series championships, was a 10-time All-Star and hit 541 home runs before retiring in 2016. When he was hit, he lived for part of the year. in the Dominican Republic.
Ortiz was seriously injured during the shooting in June 2019. Doctors in the Dominican Republic removed Ortiz’s gallbladder and part of his intestines after the shooting, and he underwent further surgery in the United States.
Among the crimes for which the 10 men were convicted were criminal organization, illegal use of firearms, attempted murder and complicity, the court said in a statement.
Authorities said more details about the ruling will be released on February 8, 2023.
Janetsky reported from Havana. Associated Press writer Martín José Adames Alcántara contributed to this report from Santo Domingo.
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