ROYAL OAK, Mich. – A well-known children’s gymnastics photographer from Royal Oak was caught with child pornography and admitted to taking pictures of children’s feet at their events for his own pleasure, officials said.
An FBI agent was investigating a peer-to-peer file sharing program last month because it’s known to be a place where predators share child pornography.
While searching the program, he identified a user who had downloaded 14 files of interest to investigators on May 11. Of those files, at least two met the federal definition of child pornography, according to authorities.
On May 23, the agent worked with WOW! cable and traced the user’s IP address back to the Royal Oak home of David Eric Yellen, 58.
Officials said Yellen is a freelance photographer who takes pictures and videos at girls’ gymnastics events. He has received credit and accolades for his work at multiple events over the years, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Friday, June 2.
“On the evening of June 1, the FBI informed us, in person, that David Yellen, a photographer we had contracted for photography services, was arrested and charged with possession and distribution of child sexual abuse images.
We immediately began communication outreach to current and former gym members. On June 4, we hosted a meeting, led by the FBI, to provide an overview of the situation and address questions and concerns. Due to Yellen’s involvement with other gyms and throughout the national gymnastics community, the FBI is encouraging anyone who believes that they may have had any suspicious or unsettling contact with Yellen to call 1-800 CALL FBI.
To date, according to the FBI’s investigation of Yellen, there is no evidence of child sexual abuse images involving any gymnasts.”
Kim Tanskanen Owner, Michigan Elite Gymnastics Academy
FBI agents searched Yellen’s home on Thursday, and he admitted to possessing child pornography on his electronic devices, court records show.
Yellen told officials that he used the file sharing program regularly, but denied uploading or downloading child porn. He said he had downloaded child porn 10 years ago and has kept it, but he claimed not to know that those images could be downloaded by others.
“Given his extensive use of (the file sharing program), I do not believe that he was unaware that he had his files in a location that allowed for sharing with others,” the FBI agent wrote in the criminal complaint.
Yellen denied producing child pornography, but said he would often take pictures of children’s bare feet during gymnastic events while working as an official photographer. He would then use those pictures for his own pleasure, the complaint says.
A computer and hard drive at Yellen’s home contained at least 1,500 pictures of children, and at least 500 of them meet the federal definition of child pornography, authorities said.
Among those photos were the original files downloaded on May 11, according to officials.
The hard drive included a folder titled “BFK,” and Yellen admitted that it stood for “barefoot kids,” agents said. There were at least 200 pictures of children’s bare feet in the folder.
The criminal complaint concludes there’s probable cause that Yellen distributed and possessed child pornography.