Here's my advice, if you buy a phone here in the DR, do not buy it from any independant person. Only buy it from a store that will provide with a receipt/proof of purchase. Had a guy in La Vega sell me a stolen iphone 4s about 6 months ago and the IMEI was blocked because it was reported stolen. To avoid any issues I took it straight to the claro store and gave it to the guy working at the desk and told him the story. There's stories of people being arrested just for being in possession of a stolen phone, and that mixed with foreigner can become a long and annoying process.