SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic (AP) — Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco, on charges including sexual abuse of a minor, was charged Sunday with illegal possession of a handgun, prosecutors said.
Franco was arrested Nov. 10 in San Juan de la Maguana . No one was injured during the fight, and the handgun, a semiautomatic Glock 19, was found in Franco’s vehicle, according to a statement from the Dominican Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The handgun was registered in the name of Franco’s uncle, prosecutors said in the statement. After the arrest, Antonio Garcia Lorenzo, one of Franco’s lawyers, said that because the gun was licensed, “there’s nothing illegal about it.”
Prosecutors requested that Franco stand trial on the gun charge.
The 24-year-old Franco’s trial in the sexual abuse case — involving a girl who was 14 years old at the time of his alleged crimes — is ongoing. The charges in that case include sexual abuse of a minor, sexual and commercial exploitation against a minor, and human trafficking.
According to prosecutors, and “sent large sums of money to her mother.”
Franco, who is on supervised release, faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted.
Franco was playing his third major league season when his career was halted in August 2023 because of the allegations. He agreed to an in November 2021. He is currently on Major League Baseball’s restricted list.
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