A former gymnastics coach has been sentenced to 90 years in federal prison for secretly recording young children undressing and using a bathroom at a training facility in Purvis, Mississippi.
Sean Gardner, 39, received the maximum sentence Wednesday from U.S. District Judge Kristi Johnson. He was sentenced to 30 years for each of three counts of producing child sexual abuse material, to which he pleaded guilty.
Federal investigators said Gardner used a hidden camera to record children at a gymnastics studio in Purvis, Mississippi, between December 2017 and April 2018. The recordings showed at least 10 minors naked or undressing, according to investigators.
The investigation began after reports of inappropriate conduct involving young athletes were made to the U.S. Center for SafeSport and referred to law enforcement, according to the Justice Department.
Authorities later searched Gardner’s residence in Iowa and seized electronic devices. A forensic examination uncovered numerous videos and photographs of minors in states of undress, including recordings investigators traced to the Mississippi gym. Some of the children were younger than 12, court records said.
Gardner previously coached at Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute in West Des Moines, Iowa, where he worked with young athletes, including gymnasts with competitive and Olympic ambitions.
Several former students have accused him of sexual misconduct during his time coaching in Iowa, but he has not been criminally charged over those allegations. Police have said they would determine how to proceed after the federal case concludes.
SafeSport temporarily suspended Gardner in 2022 after a gymnast at Chow’s alleged sexual abuse, and the gym subsequently fired him.
The FBI and West Des Moines Police Department investigated the federal case. The FBI has also established an online form for parents of children who may have been coached by Gardner to seek information and resources.