A Pharr man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for sexual abuse of a child.
KRGV reported that 61-year-old Martin Hernandez Alvarado was sentenced in the 139th District Court by Judge Bobby Flores to 40 years for continuous sexual abuse of a child and 20 years for indecency with a child by contact; the sentences will run at the same time.
This is not the only Pharr child sex abuse case that has made headlines recently. In a separate case reported by the same station, 50-year-old Juan Correa of Pharr was sentenced to 25 years for sexually abusing a child, with prosecutors saying the victim was seven years old at the time of the abuse. That report notes Correa was arrested two years before his sentencing. It is not established whether Correa is the same man described in the 40-year sentencing story, and the two cases should not be conflated.
A Pattern of Severe Sentences Across the Valley
The 40-year sentence fits a broader pattern of stiff punishments for child sexual abuse convictions across Hidalgo County in recent years. According to releases from the Hidalgo County District Attorney, sentences in similar cases have ranged from 25 years to 50 years depending on the charges and evidence presented at trial.
A Pharr man named Juan Correa was sentenced to 25 years for sexually abusing a child. In San Juan, 29-year-old Jesus Alberto Hernandez received 30 years for continuous sexual abuse of a child, a sentence the district attorney's office confirmed carries no possibility of parole. A release on that case states plainly that there is no parole eligibility for continuous sexual abuse of a child.
Other Hidalgo County Convictions This Year
An Alamo man was found guilty on three counts of sexual abuse of a child and received 25 years, per the district attorney's court records. In Mercedes, 36-year-old Miles Pena was sentenced to 35 years after pleading guilty to aggravated sexual assault of a child and assault against a family member. A Donna man, 33-year-old Carlos Gomez, was found guilty and sentenced to 50 years for continuous sexual abuse of a child and related offenses, the harshest term among the comparable cases on record.
Forty-year sentences have also appeared elsewhere in the region. In McAllen, Evelyn Chavez, 41, and Brian Chavez, 40, were each sentenced to 40 years after convictions involving continuous sexual abuse of a child, indecency with a child by contact, and aggravated sexual assault of a child, according to Texas Border Business. And in Mission, 50-year-old Patricia Mendez was sentenced to 40 years after being found guilty of one count of indecency with a child and two counts of sexual assault of a child, as reported by ValleyCentral.
Together, these cases illustrate the frequency with which Hidalgo County courts have confronted child sexual abuse charges in the past few years, with outcomes consistently landing on multi-decade prison terms. Martin Hernandez Alvarado, 61, was convicted of continuous sexual abuse of a child and indecency with a child by contact.
