A former police officer from a suburb of St. Louis in the United States has pleaded guilty to a shocking campaign of abuse, admitting he illegally stopped women and searched their mobile phones for private, intimate images.
Guilty Plea in Federal Court
Julian Alcala, a 30-year-old former officer with the Florissant Police Department, entered his guilty plea on Tuesday, 2nd December 2025. He admitted to 20 counts of wilfully depriving individuals of their constitutional right to be free from unreasonable search and seizure. In a deal with federal prosecutors, a separate felony obstruction count was dropped.
Each count to which Alcala pleaded guilty carries a potential maximum sentence of up to one year in prison. He remains free on bond while awaiting his sentencing, which is scheduled for 11th March.
The Disturbing Pattern of Abuse
According to the detailed plea agreement, Alcala's misconduct began in February 2024. He pulled over a woman and took her mobile phone to his patrol vehicle, falsely claiming he needed to verify her insurance details. Once he had the device, he discovered a private video of the woman engaged in sexual activity. He then texted this video to his own phone. He also found a nude photograph of the victim and used his personal mobile to take a picture of it.
Emboldened, Alcala continued this predatory behaviour for the next three months. The plea deal states that he conducted traffic stops on 19 other women, each time taking their phones under the pretence of checking insurance or vehicle registration documents. On each occasion, he would scour the devices for nude photos or videos and photograph any he found.
How the Crimes Were Uncovered
The former officer's scheme unravelled thanks to the vigilance of his first victim. She later checked her phone's deleted messages and discovered that the intimate video had been sent to an unknown number. Alarmed, she contacted the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).
Agents traced the number back to Alcala. Following this, the FBI executed a search warrant, which led to the discovery of the other illicitly obtained nude photographs, directly linking him to the full scale of the offences. Alcala's attorney, Scott Rosenblum, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the day the plea was entered.
This case highlights a severe breach of trust and a gross violation of the civil liberties these women were entitled to expect from a law enforcement officer. The sentencing in March will determine the consequences for this systematic abuse of power.
