HONOLULU, Hawaii – The Honorable District Judge Helen Gillmor sentenced Zachariah Fredrickson, 32, of Kapolei, Hawaii, to ten years in prison, to be followed by ten years of supervised release, for attempting to entice a 13 year-old minor to engage in unlawful sexual activity. He will also pay a $5000 special assessment pursuant to the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act of 2015.
U.S. Attorney Kenji M. Price for the District of Hawaii stated that according to court documents and information presented in court, on March 25, 2019, Fredrickson engaged in a series of online chats with an undercover agent posing as a 13-year-old girl. During their conversations, Fredrickson arranged to meet the girl in person with the intent to engage in sexual activity, and agreed to pay $100 per hour for sex with the girl. Fredrickson then traveled to an agreed-upon location, and was later arrested.
“My office will continue to protect children in our communities from those who lurk in the corners of cyberspace seeking opportunities to exploit them. These kinds of prosecutions put child sex predators on notice that the Department of Justice will not sit by idly by while they try to take advantage of children. The federal law enforcement community and its partners will proactively bring these perpetrators to justice,” stated U.S. Attorney Price.
“In today’s world the internet allows our children to connect globally. Unfortunately many parents, do not know who their children are connecting with online” stated Special Agent in Charge Eli S. Miranda. “Predators like Fredrickson use technology to sexually exploit our children. But the FBI remains vigilant and committed to catching these criminals and ensuring that justice is served.”
The case was investigated by the FBI and the Hawaii Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force (ICAC), and it was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Morgan Early.
This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.