Yasiel Puig has been found guilty of federal crimes.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Friday the former Dodgers superstar was convicted of one count of obstruction of justice and one count of making false statements after he was accused of lying to federal investigators about making illegal bets.
According to prosecutors, Puig faces a statutory maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison for the obstruction of justice charge and an additional five years in prison for the false statement charge.
He will remain “free on his own personal recognizance” until the hearing, prosecutors said.
The feds claimed that back in May 2019, Puig began placing wagers through an associate, Donny Kadokawa, to an illegal gambling organization run by former minor leaguer Wayne Nix.
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Puig allegedly went on to gain access to Nix’s betting platform on his own, and prosecutors accused him of making an additional 899 bets on tennis, football and basketball games from July 2019 through September 2019.
In January 2022, Puig was interviewed about his role in the gambling org., but prosecutors alleged he lied about participating in it.
Puig made an agreement with the feds to close out the case in November 2022, and as part of the pact, he said he would plead guilty to lying to federal investigators.
But just days later, he backed out of the deal, and proclaimed his innocence in a statement.
“I want to clear my name,” he said at the time. “I never should have agreed to plead guilty to a crime I did not commit.”
Puig’s case ultimately went to trial at the end of January. A jury came back with its guilty verdicts on Friday.
Puig is due back in federal court on May 26 for sentencing.
Puig made his MLB debut on June 3, 2103 with the Dodgers, and became one of the city’s most beloved sports figures for his brash style of play and power at the plate. He was an all-star with the Dodgers in 2014.
Following his time in the MLB, he logged at-bats in South Korea and the Mexican League.