Man Sentenced to 18 Months in Prison for Child Sexual Abuse

Pablo Gomez-Sarmiento, 24, was sentenced last week to 18 months in prison for impregnating a child under the age of 16.

Gomez-Sarmiento was initially charged with lewd or lascivious battery, but the State Attorney’s Office prosecuted him for the lesser offense.

According to the arrest report, Alachua County Sheriff’s Office (ACSO) deputies and Department of Children and Families (DCF) investigators responded to Shands hospital after the minor victim and Gomez-Sarmiento filed their birthdays on their child’s birth certificate. 

The victim acknowledged freely that Gomez-Sarmiento was the father and that she was a minor when he impregnated her. 

The victim said she met Gomez-Sarmiento while attending high school, as he worked near campus. Gomez-Sarmiento was 22 at the time, and the victim was 15.

The victim described her relationship with Gomez-Sarmiento as “consensual.” 

Gomez-Sarmiento told a DCF investigator that he met the victim when she was “getting off a school bus.”

According to the arrest report, Gomez-Sarmiento initially fled the area after learning the victim was pregnant because he knew she was a minor. The victim attempted to hide her pregnancy from her aunt, but it became noticeable after seven months. 

After learning of the pregnancy, the victim’s aunt reportedly coordinated with the victim’s parents and Gomez-Sarmiento to allow him to stay with her and the victim until she turns 18.

The victim’s aunt told police that Gomez-Sarmiento and the victim “identify as family.” 

With 112 days of credit for time served in jail, Gomez-Sarmiento is scheduled to be released from prison in August 2026.