Former UFC fighter Abel Trujillo has accepted a plea agreement while avoiding felony charges in a child sexual exploitation case in Castle Rock, Colo.
The 36-year-old veteran had initially been charged with attempted sexual exploitation of a child, promotion of obscenity to a minor and sexual exploitation of a child (self/publish) but ultimately agreed to plead guilty on only one misdemeanor charge of promoting obscenity.
The news of Trujillo’s conviction was first reported by 9News in Colorado following court records from the case being released.
According to the report, Trujillo was initially arrested this past July after exchanging inappropriate messages through social media with a minor.
Initially, investigators in Castle Rock were notified that the victim had received several inappropriate messages through social media from an adult man. Trujillo was later identified as the culprit after the victim stated that she first received a friend request from him on Instagram and she accepted because Trujillo “is a celebrity.”
Eventually, the victim says she became uncomfortable with the messages being exchanged while stating that Trujillo was sending her nude photographs. The victim eventually blocked him on social media but several months later he got in contact with her again.
The victim told police she talked to Trujillo over social media for several weeks and that she initially liked the attention because he was a celebrity as a veteran of the UFC. She later said that Trujillo started talking about sex and sending nude photographs of himself, which prompted her to block him.
A search warrant was eventually granted to search Trujillo’s phone and he eventually admitted that “he had multiple conversations with females under the age of 18” as well as sending them nude photos.
Trujillo, who last competed in the UFC back in 2017, could possibly face up to 18 months in jail and/or a $5,000 fine. His sentencing is scheduled for April 6
