A former San Diego State University football player who was previously investigated in connection with an alleged gang rape of a 17-year-old girl was sentenced Friday to six months in county jail and two years of probation for possession of child sexual abuse material.
While prosecutors declined to charge 20-year-old Nowlin Ewaliko and other former Aztec players in connection with the rape allegations, the police investigation into the alleged rape led to the discovery of suspected illegal material on an Apple iCloud account linked to Ewaliko, investigators said in court documents.
Ewaliko turned himself in to police earlier this year and later pleaded guilty to the lone felony possession count filed against him in San Diego Superior Court.
Police and prosecutors have not commented on the exact nature of the material, nor how much was discovered by investigators.
Along with custody, Ewaliko will have to register as a sex offender. The duration of the registration period has not yet been determined.
Defense attorney Marc Carlos said Ewaliko accessed the material in question when he was 18 years old, an age he said when people are “not making mature decisions.”
Carlos said Ewaliko downloaded videos onto his cellphone and “neglected to take them off, and that’s why he’s here today.”
Deputy District Attorney Ramona McCarthy said child sexual abuse material was not just found on his phone, but also other devices.
“His conduct perpetuates this horrendous, underground industry that targets child victims,” McCarthy said.
Carlos requested probation with no custodial time, arguing Ewaliko has no prior criminal history and the “collateral consequences” of his felony conviction and the public nature of his criminal case will impact the rest of his life.
Judge Polly Shamoon said she felt probation was appropriate given “circumstances that are unusual” and “pre-existing conditions” contained in a report submitted to the court, the details of which were not revealed at Ewaliko’s sentencing hearing.
However, she told Ewaliko some custody was warranted “not just so that you understand the enormity of what you did and how it affects other people’s lives, but so other people see it. And it’s not a judgment of you, but of your actions.”
Ewaliko also remains a defendant in a civil lawsuit filed by the alleged rape victim, who claims he and other former SDSU players — including Buffalo Bills draftee Matt Araiza — raped her at an October 2021 off-campus house party.
Defendants who have responded to the civil suit have said any contact with the woman was consensual, and Araiza said he was not in the room at the time of the alleged incident.
The civil case is slated to go to trial in February.
