Former Monroe County Deputy Alexander Morales Sentenced for 2024 Break-in, Computer Misuse

Alexander Morales, a 27-year-old former Monroe County Sheriff's Office deputy, was sentenced March 12 after pleading no contest to burglary, computer misuse, and criminal mischief stemming from an early-morning break-in at a Key West home nearly two years ago. Circuit Judge Mark Jones withheld adjudication and ordered Morales to serve 10 weekends in the Monroe County Detention Center beginning April 10, reporting Friday evenings and released each Sunday.

Judge Jones sentenced Morales to 36 months of probation on the burglary and computer-related offenses and six months of probation on the criminal mischief charge, with all terms running concurrently. He was also ordered to have no contact with the victim or her residence, complete a mental health evaluation within 90 days, and pay $788 in court costs, fines, and restitution. Assistant State Attorney Michael Tetelman prosecuted the case.

Morales entered pleas of no contest to burglary of a structure, criminal mischief, and two counts of unlawful use of computers, systems, networks, or electronic devices.

The charges arose from an incident in the early morning hours of April 15, 2024, when Morales approached his ex-girlfriend's residence through a side gate, opened a bedroom window, and recorded the occupants inside with his phone. Investigators determined Morales had driven to the location in a marked Monroe County Sheriff's Office patrol vehicle. Key West Police Department officers arrested him that morning.

The computer-misuse counts stemmed from allegations that Morales accessed the FCIC/NCIC law enforcement database immediately before exiting his patrol vehicle and again after the incident to search for information on the victim's partner.

Morales had been employed as a deputy with the Monroe County Sheriff's Office since January 3, 2022, just over two years before his arrest. Following the April 2024 arrest, Sheriff Rick Ramsay placed him on administrative leave without pay pending a pre-determination hearing. "I have placed Morales on administrative leave without pay pending a pre-determination hearing regarding his employment with the Sheriff's Office," Ramsay said at the time. "I am committed to keeping this community informed of significant events that occur in this agency." An internal investigation ran alongside pre-termination employment proceedings, though the final resolution of his employment status has not been publicly confirmed.

With adjudication withheld, Morales does not carry a formal conviction under Florida law as long as he completes the terms of his sentence, which include the 20 weekend custody stints at the Monroe County Detention Center stretching through the late spring.