MIAMI (WSVN) - A former aide to Miami Mayor Francis Suarez was sentenced to 6 years in federal prison on Monday after he pleaded guilty to receiving child pornography.
Rene Pedrosa will have 15 years of supervised release following his sentence.
7News cameras captured Pedrosa as he left the Miami Federal Courthouse following his sentence, neither he nor his lawyers chose to comment.
Pedrosa, 51, apologize to the court and the victim’s family for his actions. He admitted to receiving pornographic materials from a 16-year-old boy in 2019. He entered a guilty plea on May 24, 2023, for his actions.
Court documents stated that Pedrosa connected with a male teenager in November 2019 on social media for a potential web design position for Mayor Suarez.
The document also stated that on Nov. 25, 2019, Pedrosa admittedly kissed and sexually touched the 16-year-old at Miami City Hall when the victim’s mother dropped him off for a follow-up meeting.
Pedrosa confessed he continued communication with the victim through an internet-based messaging app when he received sexually explicit images of the minor, which solidified his charges of receiving child pornography.
After his initial arrest, Mayor Suarez released the following statement: “I want to thank the Miami Police Department for expeditiously dealing with this matter. The residents of Miami deserve the highest standards from municipal employees. I will always work to ensure that my administration delivers accountability and takes action to uphold those standards.”
Pedrosa had a potential prison term ranging from five to 20 years. He will have to turn himself in on Wednesday.
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