On Thursday, 51-year-old Moshe Michael Imel was charged in Calvert County, Maryland, with five counts of producing child pornography that involved two minors.
Prosecutors said that during two months in 2018, and again during one month in 2020, Imel, a resident of Owings, convinced a minor to engage in “sexual explicit conduct.”
If convicted, Imel faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in federal prison, and a maximum sentence of 30 years for each of the five counts.
Imel had coached the Patuxent Rhinos in the Greater Metropolitan Youth Football League. In a statement Friday, prosecutors confirmed they believe Imel may have had other victims. Early court documents alleged Imel befriended victims between 2012 and 2020 in his capacity as a coach.
Charges against Imel date back to 2012, with potential offenses by the former football coach stretching back into 2009.
The indictment for Imel was announced Friday by a team led by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Erek L. Barron in Greenbelt. He will have an initial appearance at a later date and remains detained on separate state charges.
Anyone with information is encouraged to call 1-866-347-2423 or use the Homeland Security Investigation online tip line.
This investigation was part of Project Safe Childhood, launched in 2006 to help combat child sexual exploitation.
WTOP’s Dick Uliano, Joshua Barlow and Matt Delaney contributed to this report.
