Man Convicted Of 'Sextortion' Of Girl, 13, At Galloway Hotel

CAMDEN, NJ — A New York man was found guilty on charges of traveling to Atlantic County to have sex with a 13-year-old and his production and possession of child pornography, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced.

Zachary Williams, 37, of New York, was convicted of two counts of interstate travel to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, production of and possession of child pornography, and coercion and enticement of a minor, following a 13-day trial in Camden federal court.

Williams initially met the 13-year-old girl via Snapchat in Sept. 2020, where he told the girl he was 17 while he was actually 33-years-old, officials said.

He asked the girl for nude photographs and once he received them, began to "sextort" her by threatening to send said photos to her friends and family, authorities said.

Williams ultimately convinced the girl to meet him at a Galloway hotel, and he agreed to let her delete the photos from his phone, officials said. He traveled from New York to the hotel on Oct. 2, 2020, where he had unprotected sex with her and then forced her to take a "Plan B" contraceptive pill in her front of him, according to court documents.

Afterwards, Williams continued to threaten exposing the photos of the girl, despite his earlier promises, authorities said.

When the girl would block him on social media, Williams opened new accounts to harass her, including "IWILLHURTYOU Iwilll_h2021," "IWILLGETTHESWITCHBACK," and "Makeadealormomfindsout."

He was arrested in a March 2021 sting operation where authorities lured Williams to that same Galloway hotel by posing as the girl, authorities said. His phone had numerous child pornography photos which have led to the identification of additional child victims in both the Eastern District of New York and the District of Connecticut, where additional charges remain pending against Williams, authorities said.

Williams faces a maximum of 30 years in prison on each of the two counts of interstate travel to engage in illicit sexual conduct with a minor, a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years on the production of child pornography, a maximum of 20 years on the possession of child pornography, and a maximum of 10 years on the coercion and enticement of a minor. In addition, Williams faces a $250,000 fine, mandatory restitution to the victims, and lifetime supervised release. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 4, 2024.