Police in the Dominican Republic said they arrested the “mastermind” and financier behind the shooting of former Boston Red Sox star David Ortiz in what turned out to be an apparent case of mistaken identity.

Authorities said Friday that Victor Hugo Gomez was detained in the Dominican Republic but did not provide details. Gomez was identified by police last week as the man behind the attempted murder plot. Authorities also alleged he has connections to Mexico’s Gulf Cartel and that he was living in the United States.

Later Friday, authorities announced the arrest of Alberto Rodriguez Mota, who allegedly paid $7,800 to the hit men hired to kill Sixto David Fernandez, who was sharing a table at a Santo Domingo restaurant with the former baseball star the night of June 9. Ortiz and Fernandez were wearing similar clothing, which may have confused the shooter, identified as 25-year-old Rolfi Ferreira-Cruz, who claimed Ortiz was not his intended target.

Fernandez, Gomez’s cousin, turned him in to narcotics investigators in 2011, authorities have said.

“I would never do something like this,” Gomez said in a video posted by his attorney on YouTube on Friday, adding that he did not try to kill Fernandez, “and least of all David, ‘Big Papi.’ ”

The detainment of Gomez and Mota brings the arrest total in the case to 12.

Ortiz, 43, was shot in the back at close range and reportedly underwent six hours of surgery to remove his gall bladder and parts of his intestine before being flown the next day to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston on a private plane sent by the Red Sox. He was moved out of intensive care last week and was reportedly in good condition.

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