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Former UFC fighter Abel Trujillo plead guilty to sending inappropriate messages to a minor.
[CW: The following story details an investigation into the sexual exploitation of a child ]
According to 9News former UFC fighter Abel Trujillo was sentenced to two years of probation by a court in Douglas County, CO on Monday. Trujillo was arrested in July 2019 and charged with sending inappropriate messages to minor.
Trujillo received his sentence after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of promoting obscenity. In exchange, three felony charges were dismissed. The initial felony charges included attempted sexual exploitation of a child.
These charges all stemmed from Trujillo’s actions in March 2018, when he sent a friend request to a minor on Instagram. In an affidavit the victim said she did not know Trujillo personally, but she accepted the request because he was a “celebrity”.
After she accepted Trujillo’s friend request, she began receiving direct messages from Trujillo. The victim said she felt “uncomfortable with what was being discussed”. Trujillo also sent her nude photographs.
The victim deleted the photos and messages and blocked Trujilo on all of her social media accounts.
In October 2018 the victim “cleared” all her social media accounts. In doing so she unwittingly lifted any blocks she had placed on other accounts. After this happened she received more messages from Trujillo.
Castle Rock Police Department began an investigation into Trujillo soon after. In February 2019 a search warrant was granted for Trujillo’s phone. On that device investigators discovered “dozens of nude young women”. The affidavit states that “the ages of those females cannot be determined.”
During police interviews Trujillo confirmed that “he has had multiple conversations with females under the age of 18” and had sent nude photographs.
Trujillo joined the UFC in 2012 and has fought for the promotion 11 times. His last appearance for the company was at UFC on FOX: Lawler vs. dos Anjos on December 16, 2017. There he lost to John Makdessi. Trujillo has not fought since then.