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Peters Township High School Senior Charged With 300+ Counts in Alleged Catfishing, Sextortion Scheme

Police say digital evidence links 18-year-old Zachariah Meyers to fake social accounts used to exploit at least 21 minors.

Overview

  • Police executed a Feb. 20 search at Meyers’ Windermere Court home, seized his phone, took him into custody, and he was arraigned the same day.
  • He faces more than 300 felony counts, including trafficking in minors, sexual abuse of children, sexual exploitation of children, unlawful contact with a minor, and sexual extortion.
  • Investigators identified at least 21 juvenile males, with at least 14 sending explicit images after being catfished on social media, including TikTok, often by a persona posing as an adult film star from the Netherlands.
  • The complaint describes coercion that included directing a teen to have sex with two men, ordering secret locker-room recordings of the high school wrestling team, and demanding $500 from two victims.
  • Court records show Meyers is being held without bail, and the school district says police reported no immediate threat to campuses as the investigation continues.