Former Calvert County football coach pleads guilty to child pornography charges
CALVERT COUNTY, M.d. (FOX 5 DC) - A former high school and youth football coach at a Calvert County high school has pleaded guilty to federal child pornography charges involving two minor victims.
Moshe Michael Imel, age 53, of Owings, Maryland, pleaded guilty to two counts of production of child pornography. As part of his plea agreement to the federal charges, Imel also agreed to plead guilty to charges related to the sexual abuse of minors in three cases in the Circuit Court for Calvert County.
According to his plea agreement, between July 2018 and November 2020, Imel was an assistant football coach at a Calvert County high school.
Maryland youth football coach facing child sex abuse charges
Moshe Michael Imel coached in Calvert County.
In March 2021, law enforcement interviewed two victims who reported that beginning when Imel coached the individuals in a youth football program and continuing through high school, Imel groomed and then sexually abused the victims.
Specifically, Imel admitted that he directed each victim to expose and touch himself in a sexual way and ultimately engaged in sexual contact with the victims on numerous occasions. Imel also created sexually explicit videos of the victims documenting his abuse.
A search warrant was executed at Imel’s home and confirmed that the basement—including the action figures lining the walls, the computer setup, the cameras, sex toys and other paraphernalia—was as the victims had described it to law enforcement.
Youth football coach accused of sexually abusing children
The Calvert County Sheriff's Office says 50-year-old Moshe Michael Imel of Owings, Maryland, was charged Thursday, March 18 with four counts of sex abuse of a minor.
A review of fourteen electronic devices seized at Imel’s residence revealed that they all contained child pornography or evidence of Imel’s sexual contact with minors.
Imel and the government have agreed that, if the court accepts the plea, Imel will be sentenced to between 25 and 40 years in federal prison for production of child pornography. As detailed in the plea agreement, Imel will be sentenced for the state case after his federal sentencing.
U.S. District Judge Theodore D. Chuang has scheduled sentencing for August 8, 2023.