The Aurora man arrested in September 2024 on suspicion of sexually assaulting an infant and possessing thousands of pieces of child pornography was sentenced to 40 years in prison on Friday.

Aaron Mocalkins, 31, faced over 20 felony charges, including sexual exploitation of a child, sexual assault of a child, cruelty to animals and more.

Court records show he entered into a plea agreement on Aug. 15 that dismissed a majority of those charges and found him guilty of three counts of sexual exploitation of a child. The 40-year sentence Mocalkins received was a stipulated, or agreed-upon, sentence between the prosecution and defense.

According to his arrest affidavit, Aurora police became aware of Mocalkins after the messaging application Kik informed Aurora police that an account with an IP address residing in Aurora contained possible child pornography.

Officers seized over 25 electronic devices during a search warrant in March 2022, six of which contained child pornography.

Police were also concerned that Mocalkins was not just watching child pornography, but was sexually assaulting children himself after recovering a message from his phone.

An 18th Judicial District judge, Judge Jacob Edson, accepted Mocalkins’ August plea agreement on Friday in Centennial and sentenced him accordingly. For two of the sexual exploitation charges, Mocalkins received 15 years in prison, with an additional 10 years for the remaining charge. All three sentences are to run consecutively for a total of 40 years behind bars.

Mocalkins was emotional as he read aloud from a handwritten statement while shackled at the wrists, ankles and waist. He thanked his family for their ongoing support and God for “saving his soul.”

“I cannot express how remorseful and ashamed I am of my actions … I promise to never take part in (these actions) again, God as my witness,” Mocalkins read.

“I know that I am more than capable of changing my life and being a productive member of society, and I believe with treatment and therapy, I can heal my wounds,” he added.

Mocalkins had a large support system in attendance Friday, something Edson noted while accepting the agreement. The victims’ side of the courtroom was empty, with the prosecution noting they had expressed a “desire to move on.” No victim impact or character statements were given to the court.

After Mocalkins’ 40-year sentence, he is subject to 36 months of mandatory parole, alongside registering as a sex offender.