Former Knox County teacher sentenced after pleading guilty to child pornography charges

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — A former Knox County teacher has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to production of child pornography and attempted production of child pornography, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Zachariah Luaie Albaba, 33, a former teacher in the Knox County School system, currently of Rocky Top, was sentenced Aug. 16 to 240 months in prison. The DOJ added that after his release, he will be on probation for the rest of his life and will be required to register with the state sex offender registry and abide by special conditions for sex offenders.

Albaba pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of attempted production of child pornography in a plea agreement filed on Sept. 11, 2022. The DOJ said the agreement showed that Albaba had contacted two separate minors through Omegle, a video chat service that was shut down in November 2023 after years of claims of user abuse. The DOJ added that the “video communications” with the minors were found on Albaba’s cellphone.

The charges against Albaba followed an investigation by the Department of Homeland Security Investigations, the United States Secret Service, the Knoxville Police Department’s Crimes Against Children Unit, Tennessee Internet Crimes Against Children, the Kentucky Attorney General’s Office, the Campbell County Sheriff’s Office and the Rocky Top Police Department.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood (PSC), which was launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse.