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| FILE - In this July 7, 2015, file photo, Subway restaurant spokesman Jared Fogle walks to a waiting car as he leaves his home in Zionsville, Ind. Fox 59 television station reported Tuesday, Aug. 18 that the Subway pitchman is expected to plead guilty to child-pornography charges, citing sources it did not identify. |
INDIANAPOLIS
(AP) -- Longtime Subway pitchman Jared Fogle is expected to plead guilty
to child-pornography charges, an Indiana television station reported
Tuesday.
The report on Fox59 comes six weeks
after authorities seized electronics and other items from Fogle's home
in Zionsville, an affluent Indianapolis suburb.
Citing
sources it did not identify, the station said Fogle would enter a plea
Wednesday. It also said the U.S. Attorney's Office in Indianapolis
planned to hold a news conference Wednesday.
The
37-year-old Fogle became a Subway pitchman more than 15 years ago after
shedding more than 200 pounds as a college student, in part by eating
the chain's sandwiches.
Subway suspended its
association with Fogle after the raid. The company declined to comment
Tuesday, saying only that the chain had "already ended our relationship
with Jared."
Ron Elberger, an Indianapolis
attorney who represents Fogle, and Tim Horty, a spokesman for the U.S.
Attorney's Office in Indianapolis, both declined to comment on the
report.
Two months before Fogle's home was
raided, authorities arrested the then-executive director of Fogle's
foundation on child-porn charges. Russell Taylor, 43, ran the Jared
Foundation, which sought to raise awareness about childhood obesity. He
was charged with seven counts of production of child pornography and one
count of possession of child pornography.
Investigators
said they discovered a cache of sexually explicit photos and videos
Taylor allegedly produced by secretly filming minor children at his
home.
After those charges were filed, Fogle
issued a statement saying he was shocked by the allegations and was
severing all ties with Taylor.
Though Fogle
has not been front-and-center in Subway's advertising recently, he had
still been acting as a Subway spokesman and appearing at events on the
company's behalf.
Fogle's history with Subway
reaches back to when he was a student at Indiana University. The college
paper published a story on his weight loss that was then picked up by
national media.
Soon after, Subway's
advertising agency reached out to Fogle and asked if he wanted to be in a
TV commercial. The ensuing ad campaign resonated in part because Fogle
seemed like such a regular guy, which made weight loss seem simple and
achievable.
Of course, Fogle was not the only
reason for Subway's growth over the years. Its $5 footlong deals were
popular with people looking to save money, and many customers liked that
they could have their sandwiches made to order.
Still, Fogle was instrumental in Subway's success over the years.
In
2013, Subway celebrated the 15-year anniversary of Fogle's famous diet
by featuring him in a Super Bowl ad and making him available to news
organizations for interviews. At the time, Fogle said he still traveled
regularly on behalf of Subway. He also said he had a Subway "black card"
that let him eat at the chain for free.
The company, based in Milford, Connecticut, has declined to provide details on its financial arrangements with Fogle.
In
1999, the year before Fogle appeared in his first Subway commercial,
Subway had about 14,000 stores worldwide, according to Technomic. As of
last year, that figure had tripled to about 43,000, making Subway the
world's largest restaurant chain by locations.
More
recently, Subway has run into challenges. The chain has been trying to
keep up with changing attitudes about health and announced in June that
it would remove artificial ingredients and colors from its North America
menus by 2017. Subway is also facing more competition from rivals such
as Firehouse Subs.
Last year, average sales for Subway stores in the U.S. declined 3 percent from the previous year, Technomic said.
The company is privately held and does not release financial information.
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