(ATR) Former USA Gymnastics President Steve Penny is under arrest on charges that he removed documents relating to the massive sexual abuse scandal that has gutted the national governing body for the sport.
Penny was arrested at a mountain cabin in Tennessee on a warrant from a Texas criminal investigation. He was indicted by a grand jury three weeks ago.
The Texas case involves abuse carried out at the national training center for USA Gymnastics near Houston. Owned and run by the fabled Bela and Marta Karolyi, gymnasts say ex-team doctor Larry Nassar abused them while they trained at the Karolyi compound.
Nassar is now in prison for sentences that will keep him locked up for the rest of his life.
Penny could face up to 10 years in prison and up to a $10,000 fine.
The indictment says that when he learned an investigation was underway he removed documents from the Karolyi Ranch with "the purpose of impairing the ongoing investigation by destroying or hiding the documents".
The Walker County district attorney says the documents, still missing, would have "assisted with the investigation of other offenses that may have occurred at the Karolyi Ranch".
While Penny was USA Gymnastics president, Penny entered into a 2016 agreement to purchase the Karolyi Ranch. That plan was abandoned for reasons not clearly stated some months later. USA Gymnastics has since ended its use of the Karolyi Ranch. The Karolyis have denied any knowledge of trouble at their compound.
Penny served as USA Gymnastics president from 2005 to 2017.
In June Penny refused to answer questions before a US Senate hearing on the abuse scandal. Penny invoked his right to avoid self-incrimination.
US Olympic Committee chief executive officer Sarah Hirshland, in a statement to Around the Rings, said"We continue to cooperate with any and every investigation as we seek to provide safe and positive environments for athletes to train and compete."
USA Gymnastics has been unable to stabilize its corporate leadership since the sexual abuse scandal broke open.
Penny’s successor Kerry Perry resigned after only nine months at the NGB headquarters in Indianapolis. She had faced criticism that she has done little to restore confidence in USA Gymnastics.
The USOC ordered all members of the USA Gymnastics board to resign earlier this year.
Mary Bono, named two months ago to take the helm at USA Gymnastics, resigned this week after a controversy arose over her social networking posts that are critical of Nike sponsorship of Colin Kaepernick.
When contacted by ATR about the overall situation at USA Gymnastics, FIG Secretary General André Gueisbuhler responded"The FIG very much regrets the difficulties USA Gymnastics encounters to find a suitable CEO, but trusts that the USA Gymnastics Board has taken the correct actions and is confident that they will succeed."
Reported by Ed Hula.
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