New York ( CNN ) -- It cost Alex Rodriguez nearly $ 1 million to buy his cousin 's silence on `` very sensitive '' matters , according to court documents . The Yankees star paid his cousin and former personal assistant Yuri Sucart $ 900,000 in 2013 and gave him and his family medical insurance , a 2009 Chevrolet Suburban and a 5-bedroom house , in return for Sucart keeping quiet on confidential matters , said documents filed in federal court in Miami . The alleged hush money came in response to a December 2012 letter from Sucart 's attorney , Jeffrey Sonn , threatening a lawsuit and demanding $ 5 million and a `` life estate '' for his client . `` Unfortunately for you , '' the letter said , `` litigation with you over [ Sucart 's ] employment agreement will reveal all of his duties you instructed Yuri to perform . '' According to court documents , Sucart introduced and personally arranged meetings between Rodriguez and Tony Bosch , the founder of the Biogenesis anti-aging clinic in Miami that is alleged to be at the center of Major League Baseball 's largest doping scandal . Fourteen players were suspended for using performance-enhancing drugs from the now closed clinic , including Rodriguez , who received a 162-game suspension -- the most severe doping penalty in MLB history . Sucart was arrested in August and charged with conspiracy and distribution of illegal steroids in connection with the scandal . In court documents , federal prosecutors said the letter from Sucart 's lawyer suggested `` the defendant would maintain his silence '' in exchange for money . Sonn told CNN Tuesday : `` This was not a threat . This was about his ( Alex Rodriguez 's ) promise to employ Yuri Sucart for life and his breach of that agreement . These guys were like brothers . '' Rodriguez 's lawyer , Joseph Tacopina , could not be reached for comment . The payments were first reported by the New York Daily News , citing court documents filed last week in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida . The letter and subsequent agreement between Rodriguez and Sucart were presented as evidence to support the prosecution 's argument that Sucart had lied on a financial document about his ability to pay for a court-appointed attorney . During his employment , Sucart acted as a `` servant '' to Rodriguez and `` handled matters that were of a very sensitive and confidential nature , '' according to the 2012 letter from Sucart 's attorney . In 2009 , Rodriguez admitted at a news conference that his cousin transported and administered to him a performance enhancing drug from the Dominican Republic . `` He basically took an instruction from me and felt he was doing something that was going to be helpful , not hurtful , '' Rodriguez said . From 2003 to 2012 , Rodriguez paid Sucart an annual salary ranging from $ 50,000 to over $ 110,000 for his services , according to court documents . Rodriguez employed Sucart beginning in 1996 and paid him through the third quarter of 2013 , according to court documents . According to Sonn , Rodriguez 's payments stopped unexpectedly in November 2012 , leaving Sucart , his wife and two children in dire straits . `` You ceased providing Yuri and his family , indeed your own family , any support , and he has suffered greatly , financially and emotionally due to your actions , '' the letter said . `` Given the sudden breach of your longstanding agreement with Yuri , '' the letter continues , `` he wishes to propose that you provide to him payment for his past services rendered , and for the loyalty he has shown to you . '' Half a year later , Rodriguez and his cousin reached a settlement under silence and secrecy , according to the documents . The June 2013 Confidential Settlement Agreement included in the prosecution 's evidence details the terms of the deal . The prosecution also included copies of four receipts for wire transfers totaling $ 900,000 from Rodriguez to a firm connected to Sucart . Rodriguez 's doping suspension by MLB officially ended last week with the close of the 2014 baseball season . He is eligible to return to the field with the Yankees in 2015 . Sucart faces up to ten years in prison if convicted .
Alex Rodriguez paid his cousin $ 900,000 in return for his silence , prosecutors say . The cousin 's lawyer says money was a settlement for a breached employment agreement . Court papers link the cousin to a clinic at the center of baseball 's doping scandal . The cousin introduced Rodriguez to the founder of the clinic , the documents say .