Zachary Covella
WAUSAU, WI (WSAU) — A man who was re-arrested on sexual assault charges has taken a plea deal.
Zachary Covella, 33, was charged with allegedly sexually assaulting and stalking his ex-girlfriend at the beginning of the year. On Thursday afternoon, Covella took a plea deal to drop two charges of 2nd-degree sexual assault with the use of force as a domestic abuser. In exchange for the dropped charges, Covella changed his plea of “not guilty” to “guilty” for charges of battery and contact after a domestic dispute. He also changed to a “no contest” plea for charges of strangulation and stalking.
Covella allegedly was tracking the woman through her cell phone when he threatened her with a knife. He would also physically and sexually abuse the woman, warning her not to leave with her daughter from Covella’s residence.
Covella was also arrested in 2013 on child pornography charges. He was sentenced to three years in prison and three years on probation for the charges. Covella is also a registered sex offender who is required to register his address for life.
He will return to court on January 8th for a scheduling conference to schedule his sentencing hearing.
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