Utah gymnastics coach sentenced to 10 years in prison after admitting to filming minors with hidden camera

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A federal judge sentenced a former Woods Cross gymnastics coach to 10 years in prison and a lifetime of supervision after he admitted to using his position as a coach to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM) with a hidden camera.

In February, Adam Richard Jacobs, 35, pleaded guilty in federal court to felony charges of transporting a minor with intent for criminal sexual activity. On Thursday, he was sentenced to ten years in prison and a lifetime of supervised release.

Jacobs was arrested in March 2023, and he was federally charged the next month. According to court documents, he was also charged with production of CSAM and possession of CSAM, but those charges were dismissed as a part of his plea deal.

Jacobs was the owner of USA Gymnastics World since 2018, and police said that he worked as a coach at several other gyms in Utah over the past decade. Court documents state that on two occasions, a USA Gymnastics World employee discovered a hidden camera in a unisex restroom at the facility and called police.

The investigation found about 120 video files of victims in the restroom. Police said that there were roughly 70-80 victims, many of whom were children. Around 40 videos showed Jacobs setting up the cameras in his home and in the facility. Reportedly, the camera was hidden by a USB charger adapter.

Jacobs admitted that in his role as a coach, he transported minors from Utah to other states, including Florida and Texas. On those trips, he placed hidden cameras in a minor’s hotel room and bathroom in order to produce CSAM.

In addition to federal charges, Jacobs was also charged by the State of Utah. He pleaded guilty to 15 second-degree felony charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and two class-A misdemeanor charges of voyeurism by concealed or disguised electronic equipment. The sentencing for those charges is scheduled for August 21.

The federal case was a multi-agency investigation by Homeland Security Investigations, Woods Cross Police Department, the Utah Attorney General’s Office Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce, Kaysville Police Department, Clearfield Police Department, the United States Secret Service, and the Davis County Attorney’s Office.

It was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Utah. It was also part of Project Safe Childhood, which is a nationwide initiative from the Department of Justice that works to stop child sexual exploitation and abuse.