Former Dodgers All-Star sentenced in Dominican Republic corruption case

Raul Mondesi, a former MLB slugger, was found guilty of corruption charges pertaining to his tenure as mayor of the Dominican Republic and was placed under house arrest for a number of years before being released.

A Dominican court sentenced Mondesi to six years and nine months in prison on Friday, according to Steve Henson of the Los Angeles Times. Mondesi and the prosecution worked out an arrangement for the prosecution to consider his prison sentence served because he was already on house arrest.
Mondesi was mayor of his hometown of San Cristobal, Dominican Republic. He was found guilty in 2017 of stealing over $6 million when he was in government and received a prison sentence. Additionally, Mondesi received a ten-year ban from holding public office and nine ordered to pay a fine of $1.3 million.

While his case was being appealed over a period of years, Mondesi was kept under house arrest. Prosecutors asked the court in 2020 to put the 53-year-old behind bars for allegedly breaking the conditions of his house imprisonment. The Court of Appeals of San Cristobal ordered a second trial in 2023 after that never transpired, and Friday’s sentence was the result of that trial.

Mondesi was an MLB player from 1993 to 2005. From 1993 to 1999, he was a member of the Dodgers. He was chosen to an All-Star team, took home two Gold Gloves, and earned NL Rookie of the Year while he was with Los Angeles. During his 13 MLB seasons, Mondesi also played for the Braves, Yankees, Diamondbacks, Pirates, Angels, and Blue Jays.