A Goleta man who fled to Mexico after being accused of sexually abusing children was sentenced Friday to 48 years in state prison, according to the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office.

Gonzalo Gutierrez Cuevas, 61, pleaded guilty May 30 to three counts of continuous sexual abuse of a child involving three victims, the District Attorney’s Office said. Judge Pauline Maxwell handed down the sentence in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.

Gutierrez Cuevas, a former apartment maintenance technician, was accused of committing lewd acts with children at an apartment complex on Nectarine Avenue in Goleta, according to the District Attorney’s Office. He fled to Mexico in January 2019 when the investigation began but was extradited to Santa Barbara County and arraigned in January 2024, according to authorities.

After his extradition, six more victims came forward, reporting abuse dating back to the late 1970s through the mid-2010s, the District Attorney’s Office said. Those allegations could not be charged due to the statute of limitations and the terms of the extradition treaty with Mexico, officials noted.

District Attorney John Savrnoch credited the victims’ bravery and the work of Sheriff’s Office Detective Martha Sosa and Senior Deputy District Attorney Lauren Franco for bringing the case to a resolution.

The three named victims in this case “found the strength to come forward, and through their bravery, they brought an end to the defendant’s decades-long pattern of
abuse,” he said.

Gutierrez Cuevas has remained in custody at the Santa Barbara County Jail since his extradition, according to the District Attorney’s Office.