Former gymnastics coach Sean Gardner has been sentenced to 90 years in federal prison for secretly recording young athletes changing clothes and using the bathroom at a gymnastics facility in Purvis, Mississippi.
Gardner, 39, of West Des Moines, Iowa, received three consecutive 30-year prison sentences after pleading guilty to three counts of producing child sexual abuse material, according to court records. U.S. District Judge Kristi Johnson also ordered him to serve a lifetime term of supervised release after his prison sentence and pay approximately $9,290 in restitution to victims.
Court records show that Gardner was taken into the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service following sentencing.
Federal prosecutors said Gardner exploited his position as a gymnastics coach to secretly record children at the Mississippi facility. The investigation later led authorities to electronic devices seized from his home in Iowa, where investigators found images and videos involving minors.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Mississippi, the case began after allegations of inappropriate conduct involving minor athletes were reported to the U.S. Center for SafeSport. The organization referred the matter to law enforcement, prompting a joint investigation involving local and federal authorities.
Prosecutors said Gardner used his access to young gymnasts to record them without their knowledge while they changed clothes or used the bathroom. Investigators subsequently searched his Iowa residence and recovered multiple electronic devices for forensic examination.
The examination uncovered numerous images and videos depicting children, including some younger than 12, prosecutors said. The recordings showed children changing clothes or partially undressed, with investigators determining that a concealed camera had been used to capture the footage.
Authorities also established that several recordings were made in a bathroom at the Purvis gymnastics facility, where Gardner worked from 2017 to 2018. Investigators identified several of the children appearing in the recordings as former students at the gym.
The FBI arrested Gardner in August 2025. He pleaded guilty in May 2026 to the three federal counts, according to prosecutors.
U.S. Attorney J.E. Baxter Kruger condemned Gardner’s actions in a statement released when the guilty plea was announced, saying the former coach had abused the trust placed in him by children and their families.
“This is one of the most reprehensible crimes prosecuted by my office,” Kruger said. “Coach Sean Gardner exploited his position to abuse and exploit those children he was entrusted to mentor and care for.”
The case highlights the criminal consequences of using access to young athletes to violate their privacy and exploit their vulnerability. The investigation involved both the U.S. Center for SafeSport and law enforcement agencies, with evidence recovered from Gardner’s Iowa residence helping establish the scope of the recordings.
