Police said they have arrested of one of the “masterminds” behind the shooting of baseball legend David “Big Papi” Ortiz.
The suspect allegedly behind the shooting, Victor Hugo Gomez, is a convicted drug dealer who did not intend to target Ortiz, but rather Gomez’s own cousin, Sixto David Fernandez, who was sitting at the same table as the 43-year-old slugger at a Dominican Republic bar during the June 9 shooting.
Police said Gomez was targeting Fernandez over a business deal that went bad after he blamed his cousin and got him jailed. During his time in jail, Gomez was associated with many of the other individuals already arrested for the shooting. Authorities said that Ortiz being the victim rather than Fernandez was a matter of mistaken identity.
“National Police have arrested Victor Hugo Gomez, one of the masterminds of the attack that injured the former baseball player David Ortiz,” the police tweeted.
#Preliminar Policía Nacional apresa a Victor Hugo Gómez, señalado como uno de los autores intelectuales de ataque donde resultó herido el ex pelotero David Ortiz. #PolicíaRD
Más detalles en las próximas horas.
— Policía Nacional República Dominicana (@PoliciaRD) June 28, 2019
Police Friday also announced the arrest of Alberto Rodriguez Mota, who was also allegedly involved in the attempted hit.
“Our Dominican Republic National Police announce the arrest of Alberto Rodríguez Mota, who was captured by members of the Dominican Republic Navy on the high sea, specifically off the coast of Samaná, trying to go to Puerto Rico, where he would evade Dominican justice,” police tweeted.
Nuestra #PolicíaRD informa el arresto de Alberto Rodríguez Mota, quien fue capturado por miembros de la @ArmadaRepDom en alta mar, específicamente en las costas de Samaná, tratando de ir hacia a Puerto Rico, donde pretendía evadir la justicia dominicana.
— Policía Nacional República Dominicana (@PoliciaRD) June 28, 2019
Ortiz survived after being shot at nearly point-blank range in the back. He underwent two surgeries and parts of his small and large intestines were removed. Ortiz is recovering at a Boston hospital.
Ortiz is a 10-time All-Star and a national icon in the Caribbean nation. Ortiz is also hailed as a sports hero by fans of the Boston Red Sox, the team he played for from 2003 to 2016.
