27-year-old Nebraska man convicted of impersonating 17-year-old high school student

A 27-year-old man posed as a Nebraska high school student to molest teenage girls and was sentenced to 85 to 120 years in prison, according to multiple reports.

The man was identified as Zachary Sheikh and was known to his peers as 17-year-old “Zak Hess.” According to the Washington Post and KOLN, the man disguised himself as a high school student for over 50 days to prey on and sexually abuse several girls, some of whom were as young as 13 years old.

Sheikh was convicted on September 11 of sexual assault, enticement of children by electronic communication and creation of sexually explicit images of children, the Washington Post reported.

The heavy sentence came after Sheikh pleaded no contest in July as part of an agreement to reduce the number of charges against him from 15 to five.

“The children you exploited were unable to protect themselves because they thought you were their equals,” Lancaster District Judge Darla S. Ideus said during the sentencing, according to the Washington Post.

Lancaster County Assistant District Attorney Amber Schlote added that the harm Sheikh inflicted on the victims was immeasurable, causing the girls to miss school, receive poor grades, feel fear and shame, and develop a deep distrust of adults.

“It has undoubtedly changed the course of her life,” Schlote said, according to the Washington Post.

Because of his height of 5 feet 4 inches and weight of 120 pounds, Sheikh fit well into the student body and attended several schools throughout the Lincoln Public Schools District.

Although Sheikh looked like a high school student, he actually graduated from the district in 2015, according to a statement by Lincoln Deputy Police Chief Brian Jackson during a July 2023 press conference.

Sheikh was caught during an investigation that began June 1, when the school district contacted Lincoln police after discovering that someone was posing as another student using the name Zak Hess during the 2023-2024 school year.

Sheikh, who was disguised as Hess, attended Northwest High School as a junior in his first semester and transferred to Southeast High School in his second semester. It didn't take long for investigators to discover that Hess was a 26-year-old man who had already graduated. He attended the schools under an assumed name for 54 days.

He was then arrested in July 2023.

Lincoln Public Schools then sent a warning to families at high schools in the northwest and southeast regions and provided a timeline of everything that would happen between October 2022 and July 2023, according to documents obtained by USA Today.

In addition to Sheikh, a 23-year-old woman is also charged with identity fraud. Angela Navarro pleaded not guilty and claimed that she was manipulated by Sheikh, KOLN reported.

She was arrested on September 29, 2023.

Navarro, who was 22 at the time, posed as Sheikh's mother under the false name “Danielle Hess” to attend meetings with school counselors, according to an affidavit obtained by KOLN. She is free on bail awaiting trial.

Officials said school administrators are following state and federal requirements for enrolling students, which can be done online or in person. Whether someone applies online or in person, the district requires a birth certificate, medical exams, immunization records and transcripts.

Sheikh has exploited the enrollment process by using fake documents. Therefore, the enrollment processes are being reviewed.