William Austin Aldama, the son of Netflix’s Cheer coach Monica Aldama, was arrested on Thursday and indicted on multiple felony child pornography charges. He was since released on $20,000 bond.
Aldama, who has denied the charges against him, was indicted last week by a grand jury on 10 counts of “possession with intent to promote of child pornography,” according to documents obtained by Fox News.
Meanwhile, representatives for Monica Aldama’s son — known as Austin — told the outlet that the “celebrity status” of his mother is what caused this case to get so much attention.
“In response to the recent media scrutiny surrounding our client, Austin Aldama, we want to set the record straight, The attention drawn to this case, fueled solely by the celebrity status of his mother, is an egregious attempt to distort the truth,” they said.
“Let us be absolutely clear — Austin is innocent,” the representatives added. “The charges against him lack legal merit, and we are confident that the facts, which will prove his innocence, will come to light during the legal proceedings.”
They went on to say that “the shameless exploitation of celebrity connections is nothing short of a witch hunt, and it’s time to respect the principles of our criminal justice system.”
“Criminal allegations, and knee-jerk reactions to them, can have detrimental consequences to the lives involved, and we call on the media and the public to refrain from premature judgments while respecting the privacy of Austin and his family,” they said. “We will remain committed to seeking justice for Austin, and we will not be swayed by the sensationalism surrounding this case.”
This is not the first time someone associated with Cheer has been caught up in a sex case involving minors.
As Breitbart News reported in July 2022, Cheer star and former Joe Biden presidential campaign surrogate Jerry Harris was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison in his child pornography case.
Harris, who was arrested in 2020 on production of child pornography charges after he was accused of soliciting sex from minors, and pressuring 14-year-old boys to send him phonographic photos and videos, was also required to register as a sex offender for life, and pay a $55,000 fine.
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