A Biloxi man has been sentenced to eight decades in prison after pleading guilty to sexually abusing a child and possessing child sexual abuse material.
Aaron Matthew Costa, 42, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of sexual battery and one count of child exploitation. Circuit Court Judge Christopher Schmidt accepted the plea and sentenced Costa to serve 80 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. Because of the nature of the offenses, Costa must serve the entire sentence without the possibility of parole or early release.
During the plea hearing, Assistant District Attorney Ian Baker said the investigation began in August 2024 after a 9-year-old girl reported that she had been sexually abused by Costa, her mother’s boyfriend, over a period of about two years
According to prosecutors, the child disclosed during a forensic interview at the Child Advocacy Center in Gulfport that Costa had repeatedly sexually abused her beginning when she was 7 years old. The child also reported that Costa told her not to tell anyone because “it would destroy their family.”
Following the interview with the victim, the Biloxi Police Department executed search warrants at the family’s home and for electronic devices inside the home. Costa was at the residence during the search and was found in possession of a cellphone.
Prosecutors said a forensic examination of his cellphone uncovered numerous photos and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children that had been downloaded and stored on the phone, a thumb drive, and a Tumblr account belonging to Costa.
The court also heard that another alleged victim came forward during the investigation. Prosecutors said she would have testified that Costa sexually abused her between the ages of 6 and 10 while her mother was in a relationship with him.
Before imposing the sentence, Schmidt condemned Costa’s actions.
“Children are our most vulnerable resources among us, and their victimhood is an abomination at the hands of those predators like yourself,” the judge said. “And in these kinds of cases, I don’t think there is any hope for rehabilitation of someone convicted of crimes like this.”
