Image Credit: HCSO & Google Earth
Tennessee Conservative News [By Paula Gomes] –
An elementary school janitor has been accused of making child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in Hamilton County.
Upon receiving a referral from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) in March, Hamilton County detectives arrested 28-year-old Zackary Nelson earlier this week. Zackary had been working at Daisy Elementary School but was not an employee of the district but was contracted through ABM, a company that contracts custodial services for Hamilton County Schools.
The referral from NCMEC associated Nelson with an account containing an image of an adult female employed at the school, along with two male children. All appeared to be pantless as a result of the photo being digitally altered.
According to the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office, a search of Nelson’s home resulted in the seizure of numerous electronic devices. Investigators found nearly 4,000 digitally altered photos and videos of children and adults.
Authorities state that more than 100 of the images had been manipulated to portray children engaging in explicit sexual acts in various stages of nudity. A probable cause affidavit claims that one of the altered, explicit images included the Daisy Elementary School employee as well as the two students from the school.
In the photo, the adult female was wearing a Daisy Spartans sweatshirt, leading detectives to surmise that the original image had been taken on school grounds.
Nelson will have his first court appearance on Monday before Hamilton County Sessions Judge Tori Smith. He was being held on a $60,000 bond related to charges of sexual exploitation of a minor but has bonded out.
Under state law, sexual exploitation of a child includes computer-generated material and provides enhanced penalties when an individual is found in possession of more than 100 outlawed images.
Should Nelson be found guilty, he could face anywhere from 8 to 30 years behind bars and be fined up to $25,000.
Sources:
https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2026/jul/21/daisy-elementary-janitor-charged-with-sexual
https://www.chattanoogan.com/2026/7/21/521188/Daisy-Elementary-Janitor-Arrested-For.aspx
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
