TACOMA, Wash. — A 25-year-old Renton man has been sentenced to 200 months in prison for second degree murder after he brutally murdered a 21-year-old woman in the Olympic National Forest, according to U.S. Attorney Nick Brown.
“This cruel and coldhearted attack robbed a family of a young and vibrant daughter, sister and niece,” said U.S. Attorney Nick Brown. “Law enforcement, prosecutors, and our specially-trained crime victim advocates have worked diligently to get justice for the family of this young woman.”
According to court records, Alejandro J. Aguilera Rojas had a relationship with the victim that he hid from his wife and family.
The victim traveled to the Seattle area to meet Aguilera Rojas in February 2020.
On Feb. 10, the pair traveled to the Sequim area.
The victim’s friends and family reportedly reached out to Aguilera Rojas, who gave conflicting information about her whereabouts.
A friend of the victim reported her missing to law enforcement when she did not contact them after Feb. 10.
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On Feb. 14, the victim’s body was found off a logging road in Olympic National Forest.
There were signs she had been beaten and stabbed, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
A broken and bloody tequila bottle and knives were also located in the area where the victim’s body was discovered.
There was no identification on her body.
After reviewing surveillance video from a Sequim convenience store, law enforcement determined that a woman and a man, later identified as Aguilera Rojas, had visited the store.
Law enforcement was also able to determine that Aguilera Rojas’ and the victim’s phones had been in the area of the murder on Feb. 10 and 11.
Both phones then traveled back to the area of Aguilera Rojas’ residence, after the victim had been killed and left in the Olympic National Forest.
On Feb. 19, Aguilera Rojas was interviewed by law enforcement and made a number of different statements about his relationship with the victim and what had happened.
Aguilera Rojas was booked into Clallam County Corrections, then taken into federal custody.
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office, with assistance from the Washington State Patrol.
In December 2021, Aguilera Rojas pleaded guilty to second degree murder.
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