ANCHORAGE, Alaska – An Anchorage man was sentenced Tuesday to over 11 years in prison and will serve the rest of his life on supervised release for attempting to coerce and entice a minor in 2023.

According to court documents, in early July 2023, Benjamin Roundy, aka “Aleks” or “Alekzander Marko,” 43, responded to a public group chat post on an internet-based app by an individual who identified herself as a 13-year-old living in Anchorage. The group chat post was actually made by an undercover agent.

Court documents explain that Roundy communicated with the undercover agent for nearly a month, first on the app and then via text message, and he initiated sexual conversations. Roundy discussed sexual acts he wanted to perform on the individual, who be believed to be a child, and made repeated requests for explicit photos of her.

On Aug. 4, 2023, Roundy asked the undercover agent to meet in person at the parking lot of a grocery store in Anchorage. The undercover agent told Roundy she was going to walk home from a friend’s house, and Roundy asked what street the friend lived on. Shortly after learning the fictional address of the friend, the defendant left his home to meet the undercover agent, who he thought was a minor.

Court documents further explain that Roundy texted the undercover agent instructions on where to meet him. When he received no response to his instructions, Roundy drove to a parking lot where he could see the street of the fictitious friend. Law enforcement arrested Roundy in the parking lot shortly thereafter and discovered a new bottle of personal lubricant and condoms in his vehicle.

The investigation revealed thousands of images and videos depicting child sexual abuse on Roundy’s electronic devices and data detailing his online presence, which included searches for child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) and related terms.

On April 25, 2024, Roundy pleaded guilty to one count of attempted coercion and enticement of a minor.

“Mr. Roundy’s conduct was heinous, as he tried to meet with who he believed was an underage girl in Anchorage to engage in sex, sought explicit images of the child, and obtained graphic images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of other minors for years,” said First Assistant U.S Attorney Kathryn R. Vogel for the District of Alaska. “Our office’s commitment to safeguarding Alaska’s children from those who seek to exploit their innocence is unwavering. We will relentlessly pursue justice by working with law enforcement to identify, investigate and hold accountable anyone who targets children.”

“The defendant posed a significant threat to children in Alaska and abroad, as demonstrated by his disturbing pattern of conduct involving child exploitation,” said Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day of the FBI Anchorage Field Office. “Even in the darkest corners of the Internet, the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force will find a way to seek justice for our most vulnerable.”

The FBI and Anchorage Police Department investigated this case as part of the FBI’s Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Alexander of the District of Alaska and Trial Attorney Rachel L. Rothberg of the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

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