Former cheer coach Darren Frank McCoy gets 20 years for child porn
By ANNIE GIMBEL
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GALVESTON, Texas (KTVT) — Former gymnastics and cheerleading coach Darren Frank McCoy, 55, of McKinney was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for transporting child pornography.
McCoy taught at Metroplex Gymnastics and Swim in Allen. He was the former cheerleading coach at Top Dog Cheer in Montgomery, Alabama as well.
He pleaded guilty on Dec. 1, 2022; admitting to recording teens in various stages of undress without their knowledge or consent and unlawfully transporting those images and videos.
Law enforcement started their investigation a year earlier, on Nov. 30, 2019, when a cruise ship McCoy was on docked at the Galveston port of entry. Authorities had learned of a prior child pornography investigation from 2015. During inspection, they found images of child pornography on his laptop, which led them to seize other electronic devices such as his phone, which also contained child sexual abuse material.
Law enforcement later found nine videos on McCoy’s flash drive, which appeared to be taken with a hidden camera. The videos, taken a decade ago, were of teens changing their clothes or showering in a residential bathroom, a gym and at a hotel for a cheerleading competition. Investigators said one of them was a minor at the time.
In total, authorities found 10 videos and 290 images of child pornography on McCoy’s devices. His collection included children between the ages of 1 and 8 in various stages of undress in a hospital, mortuary or morgue-type setting.
At the hearing, the court heard from one victim whom McCoy recorded while she was a minor. She described how his crimes against her have seriously impacted her life. Saying he “stole her childhood experiences without her even knowing it,” the victim continued, saying, “she feels rage, anger and sadness and lack of empathy toward him.”
Another victim described how McCoy sexually abused her from the time she was 12 until the age of 18 while he was her gymnastics coach. She detailed how she suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety.
McCoy was also sentenced to serve 10 years of supervised release immediately following his time in prison.
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