Police in the Dominican Republic detained Wander Franco, authorities confirmed to The Athletic, after he was involved in a fight in a parking lot Sunday.
Authorities are investigating the incident, said a spokesperson for the public ministry. A Dominican police spokesman told the Associated Press that two firearms were seized. Another man and a woman were detained in addition to Franco, according to the AP.
The Athletic has reached out to Franco’s attorney for comment. ESPN first reported details of the incident.
Franco, 23, was ordered in September to stand trial in a separate case on charges of sexual abuse, sexual exploitation of a minor and human trafficking. That trial is due to begin Dec. 12, according to multiple reports. He faces a sentence of up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Videos circulated by media in the Dominican Republic showed Sunday’s altercation occurring in a parking lot in San Juan de la Maguana, a city about 116 miles west of the nation’s capital, Santo Domingo.
Franco has not played in Major League Baseball since Aug. 12, 2023, when allegations surfaced about an inappropriate relationship with a minor. According to prosecutors, testimony from the girl and testimony from other members of her family, Franco paid the girl’s mother thousands of dollars in cash and other gifts in exchange for the mother’s consent to engage in a sexual relationship with her daughter. The mother of the girl will also stand trial.
Franco was placed on MLB’s restricted list in July, which means he is not being paid nor accruing service time. He had previously been on administrative leave.
MLB is also investigating Franco and he could still be suspended under the league’s domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.
(Photo: Mark Taylor / Getty Images)
