Tallahassee, Florida – Zachary Phillip Larson, 29, of Tallahassee, Florida, has been sentenced to six and a half years’ federal imprisonment for one count of the distribution of child pornography. John P. Heekin, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida announced the sentence.
U.S. Attorney Heekin said: “The distribution of child sexual abuse material has the effect of re-victimizing the innocent kids who have been exploited each and every time those horrific images and videos are shared. Ensuring this defendant spends years behind federal bars for his heinous crime delivers justice for the countless victims in this case, and should warn other offenders of a similar fate that awaits them if they commit these offenses in my district.”
In 2024, the Tallahassee Police Department received tips generated by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that the defendant had uploaded multiple videos containing child pornography to a social media platform. Law enforcement obtained search warrants for the defendant’s social media account and his cellphone, which contained 12,522 images of child sexual abuse material, including the multiple videos that the defendant uploaded to the social media platform.
“Those who exploit children and distribute child sexual abuse material will be held accountable for their actions,” said FBI Jacksonville Special Agent in Charge Jason Carley. “Through strong partnerships with our local, state and federal law enforcement partners, the FBI will continue working relentlessly to identify offenders and protect children. To those who think they can get away with targeting children: justice will find you.”
The case was jointly investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Tallahassee Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Christie S. Utt.
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 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and 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 Justice.gov/PSC.
The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Florida is one of 94 offices that serve as the nation’s principal litigators under the direction of the Attorney General. To access public court documents online, please visit the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida website. For more information about the United States Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Florida, visit https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndfl.