The shooting of David Ortiz was the result of mistaken identity, according to Dominican Republic authorities.

Attorney General Jean Alain Rodriguez told reporters on Wednesday that the real target was someone who was seated at the same table as the former Boston Red Sox slugger on the night of June 9.

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The gunman's intended target, Sixto David Fernandez, was sitting with Ortiz and dressed similarly.

Ordered from the US?

The attorney general and national police director, Ney Aldrin Bautista Almonte, said that the attempted murder was ordered by Victor Hugo Gomez, who has links to Mexico's Gulf Cartel. The alleged mastermind is thought to have orchestrated the attack from the United States.

The officials have reason to believe that Gomez hired a gang to kill his cousin because Gomez thought his relative had betrayed him to Dominican drug investigators in 2011.

Ex-baseball star Ortiz remains in a Boston hospital but is in "good" condition. The 43-year-old was transported to the US just a day after the attack.

jsi/se (Reuters, AP)

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