Prosecutors: Rays' Wander Franco Paid Mother of Minor for Consent – Tampa Bay Times

When he was 21, Rays star Wander Franco had a sexual relationship with a 14-year-old while also making regular payments to the girl's mother that she used to buy real estate, a 2023 sedan and electronic devices, prosecutors allege in the Dominican Republic .

The minor told a psychologist as part of the ongoing investigation into the suspended shortstop that her mother used her for personal gain, mentioning seven monthly down payments and the car in exchange for letting her continue the relationship and keeping quiet about it, says new documents related to the case, which also allege that Franco's mother made payments to the minor's mother.

The startling revelations are part of a 63-page dossier seen by multiple news sources in the Dominican Republic – the most detailed report yet on what investigators and the victim allege. The public prosecutor's office accuses both Franco and the minor's mother of commercial sexual exploitation and money laundering.

Franco appeared in handcuffs for his first appearance before a judge on Friday. The public prosecutor's office requested that he be banned from leaving the country.

According to multiple reports, the judge ordered Franco's conditional release while the investigation continues. Franco must pay a financial bond of approximately $34,000 and appear in court monthly for six months. He was neither placed under house arrest nor prevented from leaving the country. The judge ordered house arrest for the girl's mother.

“Everything will be in God’s hands,” Franco told El Caribe, ESPN Deportes and others on Friday in his first public comments since seemingly denying the allegations in a live video he broadcast on his Instagram channel over the summer .

Diario Libre and Noticias SIN, two Spanish-language news outlets in the Dominican Republic, quoted from the court documents and said that Franco and the girl's mother were involved in the exploitation and prostitution of minors, physical and sexual abuse, and human trafficking of minors .

The teen's mother “gave her minor daughter to defendant Wander Franco in exchange for money and forced him to continue handing over money to silence the crime of child abuse,” the document said, according to news outlets.

Franco took the minor from her home in the province of Puerto Plata on December 9, 2022 and “the defendant had sexual relations with the teenager for two days,” according to the documents seen by news outlets. Elsewhere in the court filing, news outlets say the relationship lasted four months.

The girl said in her interview with the psychologist that her mother benefited from her relationship with Franco and others and indicated that she was unwilling to participate.

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“Ever since I was little, my mother saw me as a way to benefit from both the partners she had and my partners, and that's something I don't like at all,” she told the psychologist, according to news reports .

The relationship came to light in July when the girl approached a digital media company with her relationship history and pictures in an attempt to force her mother to share the money she received from Franco. Based on this report, an anonymous complaint was filed with the Gender Violence Unit in Puerto Plata.

The girl retracted the story three days later and her mother went to the same unit and claimed Franco had kidnapped her daughter. Prosecutors allege this kidnapping report was an attempt to divert the focus of the investigation from herself.

Authorities accuse Franco of sending the mother $1,700 in monthly payments for seven months and buying her a car “to facilitate the relationship and let her go out with him wherever she wanted,” they say in the document in which the girl was quoted.

Authorities also say Franco's mother sent money to the girl's mother, but she has not been charged in the case, although they said she intervened “to avoid leaving traces of her son on the defendant.”

In September 2023, authorities searched the girl's mother's home and seized 800,000 Dominican pesos ($13,700) as well as $68,500 that were allegedly found hidden behind a frame. Another seizure at another house uncovered a guarantee certificate from a local bank for the equivalent of $36,000 that was allegedly given by Franco for the girl's “commercial and sexual exploitation.”

Additionally, they seized a Suzuki Swift valued at $26,600, according to the document seen by news outlets. Authorities discovered that the teen's mother had the equivalent of $821 in her bank account days before purchasing the car. The mother also purchased a property in Puerto Plata worth $36,000, they said.

Also on Friday, the girl's father filed a civil lawsuit against Franco, claiming he caused harm his daughter. He demands compensation.

Allegations against Franco first came to light publicly on social media on August 13. He initially agreed to take a week's leave of absence from the Rays when Major League Baseball opened an investigation. He was subsequently placed on administrative leave under the league and players' union's Joint Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Sanction and Child Abuse Policy.

Dominican Republic authorities confirmed they were investigating similar allegations. After four months of silence, their investigation has progressed rapidly since Christmas.

On December 26, two houses were searched: the house of Franco's mother in the municipality of Palo Blanco in Baní and the house registered to Franco in Villa Real. The next day, authorities also visited the homes of Franco's uncles. He was not found at any of the locations.

Franco's wife was told he was scheduled to appear at the prosecutor's office on December 28.

Franco didn't show up, and when he finally showed up – with a new team of lawyers – he was interrogated for about three hours and arrested.

ESPN Deportes reported that Franco was arrested for failing to comply with the subpoena. According to Listin Diario, he actually ignored two subpoenas on December 28th and 29th.

Franco, who signed an 11-year deal with the Rays worth $182 million in November 2021, has not played in a game since August 12.

Even if he avoids punishment in the Dominican Republic, Franco could still be suspended by the league. However, this is unlikely to be the case until the end of the legal proceedings.

Franco, who is due $2 million for the upcoming season, was named to his first All-Star team in July. Before his season was cut short, he was hitting .281 with 17 home runs and 58 RBIs.

The Rays' first full-squad spring training is scheduled for Feb. 20 in Port Charlotte. The team has several infielders who can play shortstop, but top reliever Taylor Walls had offseason hip surgery and may not be ready by Opening Day.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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