David Ortiz may have suffered organ damage from bullet during ambush at bar in Santo Domingo - The Boston Globe

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Marly Rivera of ESPN and ESPN Deportes tweeted that Leo Lopez, a representative for Ortiz, said Ortiz’s final surgery at the Abel Gonzalez clinic ended at 3:30 a.m. Monday, and that he’ll remain in intensive care for 24 hours.

In a statement, the Dominican National Police identified one shooting suspect as Eddy Vladimir Féliz García and said a second suspect fled the scene after the attack. The second man remains at large.

According to the police statement, García and the second suspect were riding a motorcycle when they pulled up to the night spot where Ortiz was seated with television presenter Jhoel López. A single shot was fired, striking Ortiz in the back and López in the thigh, according to the release.

While the unnamed suspect escaped, García was attacked by patrons and transferred to a local hospital, police said. He remained in police custody later Monday morning. It wasn’t clear what charges he would face.

Police said García has a prior drug possession arrest on his record. The shooting remains under investigation.

A Dominican National Police spokesman earlier told CNN that multiple people have been detained in connection with the shooting, which quickly reverberated around the sports world and prompted messages of support from a number of current and former athletes.

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Among the many athletes voicing support for Ortiz after the shooting was former Red Sox ace Jon Lester.

“Utter shock,” Lester tweeted. “That was no robbery, that was a hit, and they better get to the bottom of it. Thank god no amount of evil or hate can overcome a heart that big. You got this @davidortiz, we love you bro!”

Ortiz was at the Dial Bar and Lounge when a gunman who had gotten off a motorcycle approached from behind around 8:50 p.m. Sunday and shot him in the lower back from a close range, according to the Associated Press.

Surveillance video posted on social media by El Nuevo Diario appeared to show Ortiz collapse from the chair he was sitting in as people around him fled.

Ortiz’s father, Leo Ortiz, told reporters earlier Monday that his son was expected to make a complete recovery.

A photo of David Ortiz resting in a hospital bed, apparently after surgery, has surfaced on social media. One woman who posted the photo wrote in Spanish, “Out of danger thank God!”

At Logan International Airport Monday, a Globe reporter en route to the Dominican Republic spoke with fans of Ortiz, who expressed relief that the former player appeared to be recovering from his injuries.

“Oh, thank God,” said Ramon Pena, 68, in Spanish as he waited to board a flight to Santo Domingo where he was visiting relatives. “He’s such a good man. Such a humanitarian. He’s a leader in country.”

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“Who would want to do this to him?” said Cristina Vallejo, 62, who was traveling with him.

Vallejo said the country adores Ortiz, not just for his baseball prowess, but for the pride he shows in the Dominican Republic and his loyalty to his native home.

“When a tragedy happens, he always responds. He always supports” victims, Vallejo said. “He elevated our country.”

Pena said security in the Dominican Republic is a serious problem — shootings are common and people’s homes are broken into in plain daylight.

“They’ll break through iron gates,” Vallejo said. “This should be a wakeup call to the government. An example that more must be done to improve security ... This shows you no one is safe from a crime.”

A trauma specialist at Tufts Medical Center also weighed in Monday in a brief telephone interview.

“This is a very serious injury which can be life-threatening,” said Dr. Horacio M. Hojman, chief of trauma surgery at Tufts, who emphasized that his comments are based only on brief news reports.

The biggest concern is the damage to the colon. When the colon breaks open, stool spills into the abdomen and can cause serious infections, Hojman said. Doctors are able to clean it out, and in Ortiz’s case they are believed to have reconnected the colon.

Ortiz had been scheduled to appear Wednesday in Boston at a fund-raiser for the Ellie Fund, which supports breast cancer patients, according to the group’s website.

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Pete Abraham, Peter Bailey-Wells and Jason Tuohey of the Globe Staff contributed to this report. Material from the Associated Press was used in this report. Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TAGlobe. Maria Cramer can be reached at maria.cramer@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @GlobeMCramer. Aimee Ortiz can be reached at aimee.ortiz@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @aimee_ortiz.

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https://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/2019/06/10/oritz-may-have-suffered-organ-damage-from-bullet-during-ambush-bar-santo-domingo/GCGSOFsvaBIvcouVU58M0H/story.html

2019-06-10 15:03:07Z
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