Peshtigo man faces federal child sexual exploitation charges
PESHTIGO, Wis. (WFRV) – A federal grand jury returned a two-count indictment alleging that a 23-year-old man from Marinette County sexually exploited or attempted to sexually exploit two minors.
According to the United States Attorney’s Office – Eastern District of Wisconsin, the indictment states that on or about July 7, 2023, and again on August 23, 2023, Zachary Zastawniak of Peshtigo “knowingly employed, used, persuaded, induced, and coerced two minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct.”
Zastawniak faces a mandatory 15 years imprisonment and up to 30 years imprisonment if convicted of either count and also could be fined up to $250,000 on each count.
State court records also show that Zastawniak had previously been charged in Oconto County with 26 felony charges that include three counts of 2nd Degree Sexual Assault of a Child, three counts of Child Enticement-Sexual Contact, two counts of Soliciting a Child for Prostitution, and eight counts of Possession of Child Pornography.
Zastawniak entered a not guilty plea to all 26 Oconto County charges.
The case was investigated by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation, the North Fond du Lac Police Department, the Oconto Falls Police Department, the Oconto Police Department, the Oconto County Sheriff’s Office, and the Kingsford, Michigan, Department of Public Safety.
This case was also part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006, by the U.S. Department of Justice.
