Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco failed Thursday for a meeting with a prosecutor investigating him for an alleged date with a minor.
Prosecutor Olga Diná Llaverías said the investigation will continue regardless of Franco’s no-show. She waited for the All-Star player and his lawyers at her office, but they didn’t appear.
Dominican prosecutors and police showed up Tuesday at a Francoist compound in Baní, about 60 kilometers southwest of Santo Domingo. They did not locate the 22-year-old to ask him to appear as a witness.
Franco’s U. S. -based lawyer, Jay Reisinger, declined to comment.
The Dominican Republic prosecutor’s office said on Aug. 14 that Franco was being investigated because of social media posts suggesting he was dating a minor. The Associated Press could not determine the messages reported.
Franco’s absence may also simply be because his current lawyers would not possibly have been summoned to the meeting. The AP had access to a document in which lawyers Luz Díaz Rodríguez, Rosalina Trueba, Cristian Cabrera and Manuel Rodríguez were fired through Franco.
Franco enjoyed an All-Star season before being sidelined in August, when the Dominican Republic government began investigating allegations that Franco was having an affair with a minor.
MLB launched its own investigation, shortlisting Franco on Aug. 14 before placing him on administrative leave on Aug. 22 as part of its joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy with the players’ union. while on administrative leave. There is no timeline for the conclusion of the MLB investigation or whether the effects of the investigation may lead to disciplinary action through MLB.