A: On December 28, 2020. He was having trouble with his Visa. He was having trouble with his wrists and he went to some senior tournaments and he couldn’t play. I kept taking him to the doctors and we found out he had a problem with his nerves that had compacted in his elbow. So, they performed a surgery where they relieved the pressure of the nerve and the pain went away. He started practicing again just a little.
Then he went home (to Cordoba, Argentina) for three months and got into some more trouble. Not his wife but his common-law live-in filed another suit against him. He wanted to go back and start playing again in the U.S., but COVID set in and there weren’t many flights. He drove to Buenos Aires, where there were four flights a week going to Miami, so, he bought a ticket and left the country (without permission). The judge who was involved in his cases decided to make an example of him. She put out a bulletin with Interpol for his arrest – serious stuff.
He had to leave (the U.S.) in December to get his Visa renewed. He chose to go to Brazil because there’s no extradition. He thought he would be in the clear, but Interpol didn’t see it that way. As soon as he landed in Brazil, two days later they put him in prison. And that’s when all the shit started.
He spent six months there. Bad place. He got beat up. They didn’t care that he was Angel Cabrera. I had a lot of people approach me that they could get him out for $100,000 or this and that. We didn’t want to do that. I’ve got a friend I grew up with who does a lot of business in Buenos Aires. He had a meat-packing business and sold to Brazilians for big money. Carlos, my buddy, called them and said, ‘We’ve got to get this kid out of jail.’ So, they were able to do it.
They extradited him to Argentina, where they put him in jail again. The judge, she’s after him. So, he’s been in prison there for a couple of months. In the town of Villa Allende, they had a big parade on his behalf. ‘Let Pato out of jail! Let Pato out of of jail! He’s never done anything wrong. He’s never hurt anybody! His foundation has given away millions of dollars.’ The next day, the judge published all of his records and said, ‘This is why I’m not letting him out. He has to pay his price (for his wrongdoings).’
In Argentina, if you get a two-year sentence and it’s your first offense, it’s usually suspended. But she gave him 2 years and a month. Officially, he’s supposed to get out January of 2023. Any day now, we’re still waiting, they will let him out for good behavior and he’ll be able to do the remainder of his sentence at home (under house arrest).
He sends me messages some. But he’s embarrassed. This has been a horrible experience. But hopefully it will teach him. I hope he doesn’t come out with vengeance. Bottom line: he lacked good judgment from his tough upbringing, but he’s a strong-minded kid and that’s why he was able to do what he did in golf.
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