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ASSOCIATED PRESS
Journalists surround the police vehicle carrying Eddy Vladimir Féliz Garcia, who was taken into custody in connection with the shooting of former Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz, as he is taken to court in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on Tuesday. His lawyer, Deivi Solano, said Féliz Garcia had no idea who he’d picked up and what was about to happen, and that he expected Féliz Garcia would be charged as an accomplice to an attempted murder.
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic >> Five suspects, including the alleged gunman, have been detained in the shooting of former Red Sox star David Ortiz, the Dominican Republic’s chief prosecutor said today.
A sixth suspect was also being pursued in the shooting, which witnesses said was carried out by two men on a motorcycle and two other groups of people in cars.
The Dominican Republic’s Chief Prosecutor Jean Alain Rodriguez spoke at a news conference today. Authorities gave the name of the alleged shooter as Rolfy Ferrery, aka Sandy.
Prosecutors have said the two men on the motorcycle were seen on security camera footage talking with other people in a gray Hyundai Accent and in another Hyundai in a nearby street before the shooting at a popular Santo Domingo bar on Sunday night.
Meanwhile, in Boston, Ortiz’s wife said in statement that the former Red Sox star was able to sit up and take some steps as he recuperates in the intensive care unit at Massachusetts General Hospital.
“His condition is guarded, and he will remain in the ICU for the coming days, but he is making good progress toward recovery,” Tiffany Ortiz said in the statement.
Dominican prosecutors said in a court document that one of the suspects, Oliver Moises Mirabal Acosta, was seen driving the Accent before mounting a motorcycle driven by 25-year-old Eddy Vladimir Feliz Garcia.
“In one of the videos it was possible to observe both the accused and the shooter planning the commission of the incident right on Octavio Mejia Ricard Street, which is parallel to the place where the event took place,” prosecutors said in the court document.
The document also revealed ineptitude, saying motorcycle driver Feliz Garcia was captured after he skidded and fell off his bike as the pair tried to flee. Enraged fans captured Feliz Garcia and beat him bloody before handing him over to police.
Mirabal Acosta was captured Tuesday night in the town of Mao in the northern Dominican Republic.
Feliz Garcia’s lawyer said his client, who has been charged with being an accomplice to attempted murder, is an innocent motorcycle taxi driver who had no idea his passenger was going to commit a crime.
“He didn’t know what they were going to do. He’s a fan of David’s,” the attorney, Deivi Solano, said Tuesday.
The 43-year-old Ortiz frequently traveled to Santo Domingo, where his father and a sister live. The former Red Sox slugger was active on the social scene there, hitting nightspots with friends who included TV personalities and Dominican reggaeton musicians.
Beloved in his hometown, Ortiz traveled the dangerous streets of the Dominican capital with little or no security, trusting his fans to protect him, according to friends.
The Dominican Republic is one of the world’s most dangerous countries. The murder rate stands at 12.5 killings per 100,000 people, placing the Dominican Republic in the top 10% to 15% of the most violent countries in the world, according to the U.S. State Department.
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