A Petersburg man indicted in 2024 on felony charges related to child sexual abuse material will spend two years in prison.
Alejandro “Alex” Melendez Aguilar, 46, pleaded guilty in January to one count of possession as part of a plea deal between state prosecutors and the defense that dismissed most of the charges.
Aguilar was indicted on 10 felony counts for possession and distribution of the material, which he initially pleaded not guilty to over a year ago before changing his plea.
He was sentenced at the Juneau Courthouse on March 27.
During the hearing, Aguilar spent nearly 20 minutes reading from a prepared statement — reflecting, apologizing, and taking responsibility for his actions.
“My own despicable actions and immoral decisions brought me to this point. I did this to myself and I, alone, am responsible for the circumstances I find myself in today. That being said, I am taking productive steps to ensure that this never happens again by forcing that individual to evolve into a better person,” Aguilar said. “The actual victims will probably never receive actual justice, and if the least that I can do to ensure that or to give that is to hold myself accountable … then that’s what I’m doing. I apologize to everyone. I’m really sorry to my town, the community that I love that accepted me with open arms from the second I arrived there in 2017… I’m so sorry that I destroyed the trust that you had in me. I apologize to everyone, and I’m really sorry.”
Superior Court Judge Katherine Lybrand presided over the case. When handing down Aguilar’s sentence, she noted the grave severity of crimes involving child sexual abuse material. She said that while there wasn’t a known victim in the community, there are real victims of the crime as content of children being abused is shared worldwide.
“Their abuse that they’re experiencing is being documented and traded like baseball cards,” Lybrand said. “And that is one of the most abhorrent crimes that we have.”
Aguilar will serve the minimum sentence allowed by state law for the offense: four years — two in prison and two suspended — and five years of probation. He’ll be required to register as a sex offender when released from incarceration.
Lybrand noted Aguilar’s lack of criminal history and said his beneficial engagements in prison so far are strong prospects for his rehabilitation.
Aguilar is in custody at Lemon Creek Correctional Facility in Juneau. The case is closed.
His public defense attorney did not respond to a request for comment.
