Westchester Man Gets Max For 'Unspeakable' Crimes Against Children

BEDFORD, NY — Decades of sexual abuse against children will mean decades behind bars for a Bedford man.

Westchester County District Attorney Miriam Rocah announced on Tuesday that Felix Barahona Rosales was sentenced to 34 years to life in state prison — three consecutive maximum sentences — for repeatedly sexually assaulting two children, and sending sexually explicit photos to another child.

"This defendant preyed on young children for nearly 20 years and is a danger to society," Rocah said. "We commend the extraordinary courage of the child survivors who testified in court about their abuser’s unspeakable actions. Westchester is now safer with this defendant removed from our community."

After a two-week trial, a jury on Sept. 28 found Rosales, 48, guilty of predatory sexual assault against a child, course of sexual conduct against a child and disseminating indecent material to a minor, all felonies, and endangering the welfare of a child, a misdemeanor.

Rosales received the maximum sentence of 25 years to life, seven years, and 2-1/3 to seven years for the felony convictions. The sentences will run consecutively for a total of 34 years to life. Should Rosales ever be released from prison, he will be subject to 10 years post-release supervision and be required to register as a sex offender.

Rosales's repeated sexual conduct began when the victims were five and six years old, and occurred in Mount Kisco, Ossining and Peekskill between 2005 and 2007 for one of the victims, and between 2013 and 2021 for the other victim.

Between January and February 2018, Rosales also engaged in a series of sexually explicit conversations on Facebook Messenger with a third victim, who was 13 years old. During the conversations, he sent naked photos of himself to the child.

The Westchester County Police Department arrested Rosales on June 14, 2021, following an investigation, assisted by the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, the Ossining Police Department and the Peekskill Police Department.

Rosales was convicted in Georgia of child molestation and sexual exploitation of a minor in January 2011.

In a statement to the court, one of the victims thanked the jury for "believing me from day one. I'm proud of myself for speaking up because no child, adult, or person should ever go through the things I went through."

Addressing Rosales, the victim added, "You will never have that same power over me like you did when I was a little kid...I don't fear you anymore."

The case was heard in Westchester County Court and prosecuted by Child Abuse Deputy Bureau Chief Owein Levin and Domestic Violence Deputy Bureau Chief Janelle Armentano, both of the Special Prosecutions Division.