Man pleads guilty in child sex offense investigation

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NC (WWAY) — District Attorney Ben David said a man has pleaded guilty to sex offenses involving a child and will spend 16-24 years in prison for the crimes.

Ilver Sifuentez, aka Elder Ramirez Valasquez, age 31, pleaded to two counts of first degree sex offense with a child and was sentenced by the Hon. Judge W. Allen Cobb.

This incident was reported to New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office detectives on December 31, 2012, the same day it occurred. The victim was ten years old at the time and in the defendant’s care when she was assaulted.

Sifuentez was detained and arrested the next morning. In addition to the prison term, he was also ordered to register as a sex offender and participate in satellite-based monitoring for the rest of his life. Prosecutors said he also faces the prospect of deportation upon his release.

“For an act that took 20 minutes, this defendant will now spend the next 20 years of his life in a prison cell. This was not a crime of passion but a crime of violence, and this harsh sentence reflects that reality,” said District Attorney Ben David.