Sex Offender Sentenced for Contempt

CONCORD – A former Franklin man was sentenced today in federal court in connection with his online activities while under court supervision, U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young announces.

Zachary Cote, 26, was sentenced by U.S. District Court Samantha Elliott to 18 months in federal prison for contempt based on his violation of the Court’s order setting his conditions of release, which included that he not commit any violations of state or federal law and that he refrain from possessing computers or accessing the internet. His sentenced is to be served consecutively to the 60 months he is currently serving for possession of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).  

“The defendant flagrantly violated his conditions of release after his sentencing for possessing CSAM,” said U.S. Attorney Jane E. Young. “While the Court’s conditions of bail did not deter the defendant’s criminal conduct, the additional 18 months in prison will.”

“The fact that this sex offender continued to engage in criminal conduct while waiting to head to prison is deeply concerning, and demonstrates a blatant disrespect for the law,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division. “It is our hope that with today’s sentence, Zachary Cote learns his lesson.”

Cote pled guilty to possession of CSAM on September 20, 2021.  During a November 2020 detention hearing following his arrest in that case, a magistrate judge ordered Cote released subject to certain conditions, including the condition that he not commit any violations of state or federal law and that he refrain from possessing computers or accessing the internet. Cote was later sentenced to 60 months on the CSAM charge on January 24, 2022 and surrendered to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons to begin serving his sentence on March 4, 2022.

After Cote had been sentenced but before he surrendered to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, federal authorities received a CyberTip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) which indicated that a user on the social media platform Snapchat had uploaded two images of apparent CSAM in February 2022.  The IP address associated with the illicit activity resolved to Cote’s residence and Cote was ultimately identified as the user of the account.  He remains in the custody of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Kasey Weiland is prosecuting the case.  

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse, launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the DOJ’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children, as well as identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

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