Former Piqua man sentenced for child porn; says he ‘was not in my right mind’

Dierkes also convicted of felony gross sexual imposition against 5-year-old girl
ajc.com

A former Piqua resident convicted of having sexual contact with a 5-year-old girl and using her in production of child pornography in 2015 was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison.

“I made a terrible mistake. I was not in my right mind,” Zachary E. Dierkes, 47, told Judge Jeannine Pratt in Miami County Common Pleas Court.

Zachary Dierkes was indicted on felony charges of gross sexual imposition involving sexual contact with a child under age 13 and pandering obscenity involving a minor, all in 2015. He pleaded not guilty July 19, 2022, in a Miami County court.

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The criminal charges were filed last year. Dierkes earlier pleaded guilty to two felony counts of pandering obscenity involving a minor and one felony count of gross sexual imposition.

He was sentenced to eight years on each of the pandering charges and four years for gross sexual imposition. The sentences will be served concurrently.

Dierkes moved to Indiana in 2015 and later was convicted there of possession of child pornography, where he served two years in prison.

Pratt said he demonstrated a pattern of alcohol abuse and showed no genuine remorse. The child suffered emotionally and psychologically, she said.

Dierkes was designated a Tier II sex offender. He will be required to register his address with the sheriff in the county in which he lives every 180 days for 25 years following prison release.

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