Subway spokesman Jared Fogle, left, with Russell Taylor in an April photo taken before Taylor’s arrest. (Facebook)
Months before the FBI raided the home of Subway spokesman Jared Fogle as part of a child pornography investigation, the executive director of Fogle’s anti-childhood obesity charity was arrested.
Russell Taylor, a 43-year-old married father from Indianapolis, Indiana, was charged in April by state and federal authorities with possession of child pornography, production of child pornography, child exploitation and voyeurism.
More than a month after the raid, Fogle, of Zionsville, Indiana, is expected to plead guilty to child pornography possession charges in federal court.
Taylor’s case remains pending.
Here’s what you need to know about Taylor:
1. Taylor Attempted Suicide While in County Jail
Russell Taylor. (Indiana State Police)
Taylor attempted suicide while he was being held in Marion County Jail following his arrest, Fox 59 reported in May.
The sheriff’s department told the news station that Taylor was taken to a hospital and was on life support.
A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office told the Indianapolis Star on Tuesday that Taylor’s health is improving. He is in the custody of U.S. Marshals.
2. He Was Fired From His Job With the Jared Foundation After His Arrest
(Facebook)
Taylor was removed from his job $40,000 a year job with the Jared Foundation after his arrest.
Fogle said in a statement at the time, “I was shocked to learn of the disturbing allegations against Mr. Taylor. Effective immediately, the Jared Foundation is severing all ties with Mr. Taylor.”
According to the foundation’s website, “As a leader in the fight to help children learn life-long healthy diet and exercise habits, the Jared Foundation provides programs for children ages 6 to 14 years and support tools for parents, educators, and health care professionals to encourage and sustain lifestyle changes.”
Taylor began working for the charity in 2008, according to his LinkedIn profile. Fogle created the foundation in 2004.
Taylor previously worked for the American Cancer Society, the American Diabetes Association and the American Heart Association. He is a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University.
3. Police Found a ‘Cache’ of Child Porn at Taylor’s Home
(Facebook)
Taylor had more than 400 videos of child pornography on computers and storage media found in his home, prosecutors said in a press release.
The FBI raided his Indianapolis home on April 29 and investigators “discovered a cache of sexually explicit photos and videos Taylor allegedly produced by secretly filming minor children at this home. The investigators also allegedly found over 400 videos of child pornography on computers and storage media recovered from Taylor’s home office in his Indianapolis residence.”
U.S. Attorney Josh Minkler said in a statement, “Protecting those who cannot protect themselves will always be a priority of this office. Adults who sexually exploit children by producing child pornography knowingly cause vast harm to their victims and should expect appropriately strong punishment.”
4. Taylor Allegedly Asked a Friend if He Could Come to Her House to Have Sex With a Horse
(Facebook)
According to court documents, Taylor texted a friend to ask her if he and another woman could come to her house to have sex with a horse. The woman, who boards horses at her home, told him no. She later went to police to tell them about text messages she said she received from Taylor that included “discussions of sexual matters, including bestiality and sadistic or masochistic abuse.”
The woman, identified as Jane Doe in court documents, told the FBI she didn’t think Taylor was joking, saying “You could tell he was serious.”
She said she also received a text message from Taylor “that depicted a dog licking the nude genital area of an adult female.”
The woman told investigators she became friends with Taylor and Taylor’s wife through her husband, and remained friends with them after her husband died. She told the FBI that Taylor asked her “if she wanted to see images of ‘young girls.'” He also told her he had traveled to Thailand in the past, which the FBI says is where those with a sexual interest in children travel to engage in child sex tourism.
She told the FBI that Taylor never expressed interest in engaging in sexual activity with children, “but he’s the type of person that seems to be very sexually involved in whatever goes.”
Jane Doe said, “they liked to be sexually involved with other things,” including bondage and “messing around” with horses, the FBI said in the criminal complaint.
5. The FBI Says He Filmed Children Changing Their Clothes & Showering at His Home
(Facebook)
According to the press release, some of the videos found on Taylor’s computer and storage devices, “were produced inside the bathrooms or bedrooms of Taylor’s current and former Indianapolis residences, during the period between 2012 and 2015.”
Read the criminal complaint against Taylor below:
The FBI said in court documents that Taylor admitted to putting cameras in bedrooms at his home. According to court documents, the cameras recorded nude children changing clothes and showering.
