Baseball star Wander Franco’s sexual abuse trial is delayed until June as court searches for missing witness

The sex abuse trial of Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco began Thursday in the Dominican Republic but was postponed until June amid confusion over the whereabouts of one witness.

First posts from El Nuevo Diario claiming that the delay was due to the court’s inability to find a witness. Officials reportedly did not have the correct address, but it remains a mystery why this will cause a seven-month delay.

Now 23, Franco had an All-Star season in 2023 before Dominican authorities began an investigation into allegations that he had a relationship with a minor and paid her mother thousands of dollars for her consent.

The goateed Franco arrived at the court in Puerto Plata with his lawyer Teodosio Jaquez, who insisted that prosecutors do not have enough evidence in the case.

Franco has been charged with sexual abuse of a minor, sexual and commercial exploitation of a minor and human trafficking. He is currently on supervised release in his native country, the Dominican Republic.

It’s unclear if this delay could allow him to return to the Rays as he waits for his trial to resume in June. An MLB spokesperson did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco, left, sits in court with his attorney Teodosio Jaquez for his trial on charges of sexual abuse of a minor

After an investigation that lasted more than a year, Judge Pascual Valenzuela ruled in September that the evidence presented by prosecutors was worth taking the case to trial.

“It is a strong accusation and the court understands it,” prosecutor Claudio Cordero said in September, according to the Associated Press. “The evidence linked the defendants to what is described in the charge.”

If Franco is convicted, he could face 20 years in prison. He also faces separate weapons-related charges in another case in the Dominican Republic and could face up to five additional years in prison if convicted.

Documents prosecutors submitted to the judge in July and viewed by The Associated Press allege that Franco, through his mother Yudelka Aybar, wired 1 million pesos, or $17,000, to the minor’s mother on Jan. 5, 2023, to collect agree with the abuse. The minor’s mother has been charged with money laundering and is under house arrest.

Prosecutors say the mother of a bank employee’s minor led a ostentatious life and acquired assets using the money she received from Franco. During raids on the home of the minor’s mother, prosecutors say they found $68,500 and $35,000, which they allege was delivered by Franco.

After the hearing in September, Franco said that “everything is in God’s hands.” He has otherwise refused to speak to the media.

The trial will take place on December 12 at a court in the northern province of Puerto Plata. His case will be heard by three or five judges. There are no jury trials in the Dominican Republic. The judges will hear the arguments of both sides and the testimony of the witnesses, then analyze the evidence and issue a verdict. The process can take up to eight months, based on the average length of trials in the Dominican Republic.

Franco has been released under supervised release, although he was required to make monthly follow-up visits to the judge.

Wander Franco arrives at court for his trial on charges of sexual abuse of a minor

23-year-old Franco is accused of sexual and psychological abuse of a 14-year-old girl

He was also arrested and released on supervised release again in November for illegally transporting a gun in his vehicle. The arrest followed an argument in the parking lot of an apartment complex. A man and a woman were also arrested during the confrontation. Two firearms were seized, police said.

Dominican judge Viamerca Ruiz said Franco must report to court once a month while he is under investigation for carrying the firearm registered in his uncle’s name. One of Franco’s lawyers said that because the gun is licensed, “there is nothing illegal about it.”

A conviction for illegal possession of a firearm can carry a prison sentence of three to five years.

No, but that was almost a year after Dominican authorities opened their investigation.

Franco, who signed an 11-year, $182 million contract with the Rays in 2021, was briefly placed on the restricted list and then placed on administrative leave in August 2023 when Dominican authorities opened their investigation. Because administrative leave is not disciplinary under the sport’s joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy, Franco was paid during that time.

Technically there is no offseason leave, and Franco was placed on administrative leave again at the start of the 2024 season until prosecutors filed the current charges on July 10. At that point, MLB placed Franco — who had a $2 million salary in 2024 — on the restricted list, halting pay he had been receiving while on administrative leave.

He had been receiving 50 percent of his salary while on administrative leave, a person familiar with his situation told the AP, speaking on condition of anonymity because that detail had not been made public. That meant Franco earned $559,140, ​​or half his salary, for 104 days of the 186-day season.

MLB will likely wait until the Dominican process is completed before deciding whether there will be discipline.