PUERTO PLATA, Dominican Republic (AP) — Wander Franco, the suspended Tampa Bay Rays shortstop, was found guilty Thursday in a sexual abuse case but received a two-year suspended sentence.
Franco was arrested last year after being accused of having a four-month relationship with a girl who was 14 at the time, and of transferring thousands of dollars to her mother to consent to the illegal relationship.
Franco, now 24, also faced charges of sexual and commercial exploitation against a minor, and human trafficking.
Prosecutors had requested a five-year prison sentence against Franco and a 10-year sentence against the girl’s mother, who was found guilty and would serve the full sentence