Subway spokesman Jared is raided by feds over child porn

(NaturalNews) His story of epic weight loss was as inspiring as it was unusual, but now Jared Fogle's legacy is in danger of becoming forever tainted by a disgusting endeavor.

Jared, you may remember, became the face of the Subway sandwich shop franchise in 2000 after he lost 245 pounds by walking and eating an all-Subway diet while he attended the University of Indiana.

Now, however, he has been implicated in an alleged child pornography ring and, well, things are about to get ugly.

As reported by Reuters, federal, state and local officials searched Fogle's Indiana home July 7, some two months after the executive director of his foundation was arrested on federal child pornography charges.

As Reuters further noted:

Fogle, well known from his appearances on Subway television commercials, was seen for a time outside his home in Zionsville, a suburb northwest of Indianapolis, as law enforcement agents removed electronics from the house, local news outlet WTHR reported.

As the search continued, Fogle left his home in the upscale neighborhood around noon, local media said.

While it is not yet clear if Fogle, a father of two, is a target of what officials have said is a joint investigation, the early implications are not good. Thus far, according to Fogle's attorney, he has not been detained or arrested or charged "with any crime or offense."

"Jared has been cooperating, and continues to cooperate, with law enforcement in their investigation of unspecified charges and looks forward to its conclusion," attorney Ron Elberger said in a statement.

Cooperating doesn't mean innocence, though no charges yet

Initially, Subway officials issued a statement saying that they were "shocked" by the news but that they believed the investigation into Fogle was related to the prior investigation of the former Jared Foundation chief, Russell Taylor.

"We are very concerned and will be monitoring the situation closely," a Subway spokesman said. "We don't have any more details at this point."

But within hours, as reported by Fox News, the company cut its ties to Fogle, which may have been based on information that company officials received concerning the investigation.

According to a statement released by the company, both sides agreed that suspending the relationship was "the appropriate step to take," adding that Fogle continues to cooperate with authorities and expects "no actions to be forthcoming."

A report in The Indianapolis Star newspaper noted that electronic equipment had been removed from Fogle's home and evaluated in a truck that authorities brought with them during their search.

Reuters noted that officials told reporters that the FBI and U.S. Postal Service were involved in the investigation. Taylor was arrested May 3 and charged with seven counts of production and one count of possession of child pornography.

Police and federal authorities said a search of Taylor's residence turned up videos they believe he produced by secretly filming minor children at his home. Investigators said they discovered more than 400 videos containing alleged child pornography on computers and other storage media that they recovered from Taylor's office and home in Indianapolis.

Fogle story reminds us of Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales

Late in the afternoon on July 7, after officials began searching Fogle's home, his attorney, Ron Elberger, returned there without his client. When asked by a local reporter how Fogle was doing, Elberger responded, "Quite well."

While there may not be any formal charges filed against Fogle at this time, you have to remember that federal officials, especially, tend not to waste their time on hunches. Most often, they move after getting solid leads, and there is no reason to expect that is not the case with Fogle.

The entire ordeal with Fogle sounds a lot like that of Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales, who used porn money to help launch the site and then edited his own entry to cover up ties to the porn industry.

You can read all about Wales' ties to pornography at his TruthWiki page here.

Sources:

http://www.thedailysheeple.com

http://www.reuters.com

http://www.naturalnews.com

http://www.foxnews.com

http://www.indystar.com

http://www.msn.com