He new trial against the Dominican player Wander Franco for sexual abuse against a teenager will begin this Friday, February 20 in the judicial district of Puerto Plataafter a appeal court annul the first instance sentence that had sentenced him to two years suspended prison sentence.
The decision was taken by the Court of Appeal of the Criminal Chamber of the judicial district of Puerto Platawhich ordered the holding of a new process after accepting the appeals filed by the parties against the ruling issued on June 27, 2025 by the Collegiate Court of that jurisdiction.
He appeal courtmade up of judges Onasis Pelegrín, Xiomara Tineo and Juan Suardi, ordered to restart the hearing of the case from the trial stage, so that new magistrates evaluate the evidence and apply the corresponding law.
The mother of the minor
The new process will also involve Martha Vanessa Chavaliermother of the victim, whose 10-year prison sentence was also annulled. In the original sentence she had been found guilty of sexual exploitation commercial and money laundering.
In the first instance, Franco was convicted of violating article 396, literals b and c, of the National Council for Children and Adolescents, contained in the Law 136-03 on the protection of children and adolescents.
- The penalty imposed was two years of prison under suspension, in addition to the payment of 10 minimum wages and criminal costs.
After the initial sentence, the Public Ministry He appealed because he considered the sentence imposed on Franco insufficient, while both the player and Chavalier appealed the ruling because they were not satisfied with the decision. As a result, the Court of Appeal arranged the celebration of a new trial.
The audience is scheduled to begin at 9:00 in the morningaccording to the calendar established by the court.
