Nebraska man who posed as high schooler and committed sex crimes is described as ‘predator of the worst kind’

September 13, 2024

A man who posed as students at two Lincoln, Nebraska, high schools to commit sex crimes was sentenced to 85 to 120 years in prison by prosecutors who called him “a predator of the worst kind.”

Zachary Scheihi, 27, who posed as a 17-year-old student named Zach Hess, will not be eligible for parole for more than 40 years and will also have to register as a sex offender as part of his sentence, according to the Cologne News Agency. Scheihi attended Northwest and Southeast high schools for about 54 days before being arrested in July 2023, authorities said at the time.

Schaich has pleaded not guilty to multiple sexual assault charges and other charges, and Deputy County Attorney Amber Scholte said at his sentencing hearing this week that his actions were “the worst kind of predator who preys on children.”

“He targeted and lured women through social media,” Scholte said, “posing as their associates, friends and in some cases lovers, for his own sexual purposes and gratification.”

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Zachary Shaich, of Lincoln, was arrested in July 2023. (Lincoln Police Department)

While the crimes Scheikh are accused of committing took place off school grounds, prosecutors say he created false documents and a lengthy resume, disguised himself as a high school student and sexually assaulted multiple children, causing damages to the school district of more than $6,000, KOLN reported.

“They knew not to talk to adult men on social media. They knew not to meet alone with adult men and they knew how to protect themselves from those kinds of dangers,” Judge Ideus told Shaich during Wednesday's sentence. “They didn't know how to protect themselves from you, because they considered you a comrade, they considered you a friend and you had their trust.”

The Lincoln Police Department previously said it began its investigation in June 2023 when Lincoln Public Schools discovered someone was impersonating a student named Zach Hess.

“Hess was reported to be 17 years old and was initially enrolled at Northwest High School during the 2022-2023 school year before transferring to Southeast High School for the second semester,” police said at the time. “It was later discovered that he was a 2015 graduate of Lincoln Public Schools.”

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Nebraska man poses as high school student

Lincoln authorities discovered that Schaich had claimed to be a student named Zach Hess. (Lincoln Police Department)

An investigation revealed that the suspect was, in fact, 26 years old. Police said the suspect was 5 feet 4 inches tall, weighed 120 pounds and blended in with the teenage students.

“As the investigation continued, it was discovered that Sheahi had engaged in multiple contact with underage students using the alias Hess,” Lincoln Police added. “This provided sufficient information to issue an arrest warrant.”

Angela Navarro, 23, was also arrested and accused of posing as “Danielle Hess,” Zach's mother, to help Schaich get into Lincoln Public Schools, KOLN reports.