An ex-coach at a renowned Iowa youth gymnastics academy known for producing top Olympians was arrested for having a trove of child pornography years after he was accused of sexually assaulting multiple young athletes.
Sean Gardner, 38, was busted by the FBI for producing child pornography materials after authorities raided his home, finding hundreds of images of children, following an investigation into inappropriate contact with gymnasts at Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute in West Des Moines.
It’s believed Gardner “primarily targeted children” at the gyms in Iowa, Mississippi, and one in Louisiana, where he worked for 10 years until 2014, the FBI told the Associated Press Tuesday.
Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute previously trained Shawn Johnson and Gabby Douglas to Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012.
Investigators had been on the alleged creep gymnast coach’s trail for years.
The West Des Moines Police began investigating Gardner in March 2022 after an Iowa gymnast reported his conduct at Chow’s to the US Center for SafeSport, which oversees sex-abuse cases in Olympic sports.
The gymnast — a minor at the time — claimed Gardner would rub his hands in inappropriate places while helping young female gymnasts practice routines, would ask them personal questions like if they were sexually active, and used sexually degrading language towards them, calling them names like “idiots, sluts, and whores,” the Associated Press reported.
In July 2022, four months after the gymnast’s report, the SafeSport database shows Gardner was suspended for “allegations of misconduct.”
Gardner was suspended from Chow’s Gymnastics and Dance Institute following SafeSport’s suspension.
The victim chose not to prosecute, pausing the investigation until a second gymnast came forward with new allegations in April 2024.
The second victim claimed that she started taking lessons from Gardner when she was 11 or 12 years old in 2019 and viewed him as a “father figure.”
She claimed Gardner had repeatedly touched her inappropriately during exercises, made her perform inappropriate stretches, which he recorded on his phone, and discussed his sex life with her.
About 16 months after reporting his alleged disturbing behavior, the West Des Moines Police Department obtained a warrant to search Gardner’s home.
Law enforcement seized several electronic devices from Gardner’s home in May 2024, finding hundreds of videos and images of girls, ages 6 to 14, nude, changing, or using the bathroom—believed to have been filmed on a hidden camera at Jump’In Gymnastics in Purvis, Mississippi, between 2017 and 2018, according to court documents obtained by the Associated Press.
Handwritten notes between Gardner and his former students were also found in the search.
Athletes in Motion, the Louisiana gym where Gardner worked from 2004 to 2014, was notified of the allegations and is cooperating with investigators.
Following his suspension, Gardner landed a job as a surgical technologist at MercyOne West Des Moines Medical Center in Des Moines in May 2024.
Hospital spokesperson Todd Mizener stated that Gardner is no longer employed there.
Gardner is being detained at the Polk County Jail and made his initial court appearance in Des Moines on Friday on a charge of producing visual depictions of minors engaging in sexually explicit conduct.
He is expected to be transported to Mississippi to face the charge there, the US Marshals Service told the Associated Press.
The FBI is also seeking to identify any other potential victims.
Gardner faces up to 30 years in prison if found guilty.
with Post wires
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