A prominent gymnastics coach was arrested on child pornography charges after being suspended for three years.
Sean GardnerWorking at an elite academy known for training Olympic champions, he was detained by the FBI last week.
The arrest comes three years after Gardner was suspended from coaching at the Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute in West Des Moines, Iowa. Gardner moved from Mississippi to Iowa in 2018 to take on the job.
In court records Associated PressGardner is accused of abusing at least three young gymnasts on Chow’s and secretly recording others’ undressing in the gym bathroom during his Jump’in gymnastics and tumble in Hattiesburg, Mississippi.
Chow’s is known for the gymnasts of American gymnasts Sean Johnson and Gabby Douglas He received training before becoming gold medalists at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.
US Weekly Already engaged with the Gymnastics and Dance Academy at Chow and performed gymnastics and tumbles for comment.
Gardner’s case has not been resolved by the US SafeSport Center, which is this Larry Nassar Sexual abuse scandal and responsible for handling sexual abuse cases in the Olympics.
West Des Moines police executed a search warrant at Gardner’s home in May, thus recovering photos and videos on his computer and the naked girl’s cell phone, according to court records.
The FBI affidavit issued on August 15 details some of the so-called abuses carried out by Gardner.
A girl reported to SafeSport in March 2022 that Gardner used “inappropriate discovery techniques” during training, placing his hands between her legs and touching her vagina.
The girl said Gardner would allegedly ask the girl if she was sexually active and called “idiots, sluts and prostitutes.” She listed the names of six other potential victims, one of whom stepped forward in August 2022, accusing “sexual contact and physical abuse” at the hands of Gardner.
Four months after the initial abuse charge, SafeSport suspended Gardner in July 2022, but the potential criminal investigation has stalled after none of the alleged victims were willing to apply for criminal charges under the criminal charge.
The case against Gardner was until April 2024, when another former student of Joe filed a charge of abuse.
Gardner appeared in Des Moines Courtroom on August 15 to produce visual descriptions of minors engaged in sexual acts that can be sentenced to up to 30 years in prison.
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