Peshtigo man sentenced to federal prison admits to sexually exploiting ‘numerous’ minors

(WLUK) — A Peshtigo man was sentenced to 25 years in federal prison Friday after pleading guilty to sexual exploitation of a minor.

Officials say Zachary Zastawniak, 24, “knowingly and willingly” enticed a minor to send him a sexually explicit video.

As part of his plea agreement, Zastawniak admitted that he used social media platforms to “victimize numerous minors in Oconto County and Northeastern Wisconsin by using coercive techniques to force them to engage in sexual activity.”

Judge Griesbach described the case as “horribly aggravated,” saying Zastawniak repeatedly made “bad decisions” and engaged in “monstrous behavior.”

Judge Griesbach described Zastawniak’s previous involvement in similar crimes as “quite terrifying.”

Many of Zastawniak’s victims spoke at Friday’s sentencing hearing.

After Zastawniak serves his sentence, he will be on supervised release for 25 years and will be required to register as a sex offender.