Anchorage man pleads guilty to a child exploitation offense

Press Release

The FBI is seeking to identify potential victims.

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - An Anchorage man pleaded guilty today to attempting to coerce and entice a minor in 2023.

According to court documents, in July 2023, Benjamin Roundy, aka "Aleks" or "Alekzander Marko," 42, began communicating with an individual he believed was a 13-year-old girl on an online platform, but who was in fact an FBI agent acting in an undercover capacity. Between July 7 and Aug. 4, the defendant discussed multiple topics with the individual, including directions to send sexually explicit content, requests to meet in person and what sexual actions would happen if they met in person.

The defendant arranged to meet in person on Aug. 4 and was subsequently arrested by law enforcement when he attempted to do so.

Following his arrest, law enforcement discovered over 5,500 images and videos depicting child sexual abuse on Roundy's devices. The investigation also revealed that in July 2017, Roundy uploaded videos depicting child sexual abuse to an online platform.

He is scheduled to be sentenced on a later date and faces a sentencing range of 10 years to life in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker of the District of Alaska made the announcement.

The FBI's Child Exploitation and Human Trafficking Task Force is investigating the case. If anyone has any information concerning Roundy's actions or may have encountered someone using the name "Aleks" or "Alekzander Marko" in person, via text message on an online messaging app, please contact the FBI Anchorage Field Office at (907) 276-4441 or anonymously at tips.fbi.gov.

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) are prosecuting 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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Updated April 25, 2024