Ex-MLB All-Star Felipe Vazquez deported to Venezuela after child sex abuse conviction

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Former Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Felipe Vazquez was deported to Venezuela earlier this month more than two years after he was convicted of statutory sexual assault, sexual abuse of children, and child pornography and other charges in Pennsylvania, officials said Wednesday.

ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) Philadelphia removed Vazquez on Dec. 1. Vazquez’s real name is Felipe Javier Rivero Blanco.

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Felipe Vazquez with officers in 2023. (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement)

"Rivero Blanco’s removal demonstrates ERO Philadelphia’s commitment to protecting U.S. persons from predators regardless of their public persona or status," ERO Philadelphia Field Office Director Cammilla Wamsley said in a statement.

Officials lodged an immigration detainer notice of action with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections in November 2021. It was six months after he was convicted of the charges.

The two-time MLB All-Star was sentenced to 2-4 years in prison in August 2021. The sentence included two years of probation.

He was initially charged in September 2019 with statutory sexual assault, unlawful contact with a minor, corruption of minors, and indecent assault of a person younger in connection with an alleged inappropriate relationship he had with a 13-year-old in 2017 who reached out to him on social media.

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Felipe Vazquez of the Pirates delivers a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park on Sept. 6, 2019, in Pittsburgh. (Justin Berl/Getty Images)

In November 2019, he was