David Ortiz Targeted by Drug Kingpin in 2019 Shooting, Private Investigators Say

A Dominican drug trafficker who was jealous of David Ortiz and felt “disrespected” by him ordered for him to be killed in the 2019 shooting that nearly took the former Red Sox slugger’s life, according to a report from the Associated Press.

Ortiz hired former Boston police commissioner Edward Davis as a private investigator to review the incident. Davis told The Boston Globe that drug-trafficker César Peralta was the man who orchestrated the shooting of Ortiz by placing a bounty and ordering a hit squad to try to kill him. Dominican authorities would not cooperate with the private investigation with Davis.

Peralta is currently being held in Puerto Rico without bond for unrelated charges for conspiracy to import cocaine and heroin. He was designated as a drug kingpin by U.S. authorities in 2019 and was extradited to Puerto Rico as a result.

Peralta has not been charged in the murder attempt of Ortiz, and his lawyer Joaquin Perez said that Peralta had nothing to do with the crime. Perez described Ortiz and Peralta as close friends, while Ortiz insists he only knew Peralta casually.

The account of the crime by Dominican authorities concluded that the target of the shooting was supposed to be Sixto David Fernandez, who was eating dinner with Ortiz when he was shot. The authorities said that the hit men confused Fernandez with Ortiz and shot the wrong guy—an explanation that confused many considering that Big Papi is one of the most recognizable athletes in the history of the Dominican Republic.

The private investigation by Davis directly contradicts the findings by the Dominican authorities.

While Peralta has not been charged in connection with the shooting of Ortiz, 13 others have, and are awaiting trial in the Dominican Republic.