Woodbridge Firefighter, EMT Charged With Soliciting Child

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — An Iselin man who worked as an EMT and volunteer firefighter was charged Thursday with soliciting a child to take nude pictures of himself and send them online, acting U.S. Attorney William E. Fitzpatrick announced.

Zachary Motta, 22, is charged by complaint with one count of sexual exploitation of children. He appeared in Newark federal court today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Steven C. Mannion and was detained. This is an undated photo of Motta provided by the Middlesex County prosecutor's office.

Prosecutors charge that beginning in October 2016, Motta engaged in sexually explicit communications with a boy who told Motta that he was 12 years old. Over the course of their correspondence, Motta sent the minor victim images of himself in his EMT and firefighter uniforms and asked the boy to send him nude pictures, the U.S. Attorney said. Motta allegedly warned the boy, “Just don’t get caught.”

In response to Motta’s requests, the boy sent Motta nude images of his genitals on two occasions.

The charge of sexual exploitation of a child carries a mandatory minimum penalty of 15 years in prison, a maximum potential penalty of 30 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Acting U.S. Attorney Fitzpatrick credited special agents with the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Timothy Gallagher in Newark, and the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office, under the direction of Andrew C. Carey, with the investigation.

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