MLB ALL-STAR FELIPE VAZQUEZ CONVICTED OF SEXUALLY ABUSING TEEN, COULD FACE DEPORTATION. During Trial, prosecutors said Vazquez called victim him ‘slave’
May 21, 2021
Ryan Gaydos
Fox News
Two-time MLB All-Star Felipe Vazquez was convicted of statutory sexual assault, sexual abuse of children and child pornography and other charges in Pennsylvania on Thursday.
Vazquez, who played for the Pittsburgh Pirates from 2016 until his arrest in 2019, was found guilty in a Westmoreland County courtroom on 15 counts, according to ESPN. He was found not guilty on 10 counts of unlawful contact or communication with a minor.
He was initially charged in September 2019 with statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, corruption of minors and indecent assault of a person younger in connection with an alleged inappropriate relationship he had with a 13-year-old in 2017 who reached out to him on social media.
In November 2019, he was slammed with 21 additional charges after investigators said they found evidence of child pornography on his phone and laptop in connection to the same case.
Police found seven photos and three videos Vazquez and the girl exchanged in which they both were "in various stages of nudity," according to court documents. The graphic imagery was discovered on electronic devices confiscated from Vazquez when he was first arrested.
Vazquez allegedly met the 13-year-old victim at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park and took pictures with her outside the bullpen. A complaint revealed that at the time of his arrest he told police he had "sex but not really" with the girl in 2017. During the trial, prosecutors showed the jury alleged text messages between the two in which Vazquez called the teen his "slave" in his "possession."
Vazquez faced more child pornography charges last May in Missouri. He allegedly sent a photo of himself masturbating to a 15-year-old Pennsylvania resident on July 16. The same night, he picked up a save in a game against the St. Louis Cardinals. He is facing similar charges in Florida as well.
Vazquez is expected to be sentenced within the next 90 days and could face deportation to Venezuela, according to The Daily Mail.
https://www.foxnews.com/sports/mlb-felipe-vazquez-convicted-sexually-abusing-teen-deportation
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