Former Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez was sentenced Tuesday to two to four years in state prison for sexually assaulting a 13-year-old girl.
According to our news partners at WPXI, the sentence includes two years of probation and Vazquez registering as a sex offender for life.
Vazquez was found guilty on May 20 on 15 charges, including 10 counts of sexual abuse of children, two counts of unlawful contact with a minor and one count each of statutory sexual assault, indecent sexual assault and corruption of a minor. He was found not guilty on 10 charges of unlawful contact or communication with a minor.
Those charges stemmed from an inappropriate relationship which began in 2017, when the victim was only 13, and continued up to Vazquez’s arrest in September 2019. Investigators said that during the initial questioning following his arrest, Vazquez told them he had sex with the victim in his car. Vazquez later testified that the police lied and he never confessed, and claimed that he believed the girl was 18.
Vazquez again claimed during the trial that he believed the victim was 18 because she showed him identification. The victim denied that accusation.
Police also found inappropriate pictures and videos on Vazquez’s phone and laptop, as well as sexual conversations between himself and the minor.
Vazquez has been held at the Westmoreland County Prison without bail since his arrest. The victim is from Scottdale, Westmoreland County.
Cases are also being built against Vazquez in Florida and in Missouri, where he’s accused of sending the same victim inappropriate messages.
Vazquez, 30, has been on Major League Baseball’s restricted list since his arrest, with the Pirates immediately severing all ties with the suspended pitcher. His contract is set to expire at the end of the season. He is not being paid.
