REVEALED: Female friend of Subway's pitchman Jared Fogle wore a wire to help FBI's child porn investigation after he made 'surprising and inappropriate remarks' 

  • A Florida woman revealed she wore a wire around Jared Fogle to help with a child pornography case the FBI was working on
  • She also said she had known him for 10 years, and he had once made 'surprising and inappropriate remarks' around her 
  • Federal authorities confirmed this woman's story 
  • Fogle and the man at the center of the investigation, Russell Taylor, were pictured together in a photo posted on April 22 on Taylor's Facebook page
  • On April 29, Taylor's home was raided on suspicion of child pornography and authorities found over 400 videos of underage boys and girls 
  • Many of the videos were filmed in Taylor's homes and the minors were unaware they were being filmed

The FBI spent months investigating Jared Fogle prior to the raid on his home earlier this week.

This new detail comes from a Florida woman who revealed to Fox 59 she wore a wire while speaking to Fogle before agents seized hard drives from his house on Tuesday, a claim federal authorities have confirmed.

The woman, whose identity is being kept secret and whose evidence was crucial to the bureau's investigation, also said Fogle often made 'surprising and inappropriate' remarks about subject matter that was 'similar to what the FBI found when they raided his home.' 

The raid of Fogle’s home was reportedly related to the child pornography investigation into Russell Taylor, the former head of Fogle’s charitable foundation who was found to have over 400 pornographic videos featuring underage boys and girls in late April.

Fogle and Taylor were pictured in a post on Taylor's Facebook page on April 22 of this year, a week before that raid on Taylor's home. 

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Friends: Jared Fogle and Russell Taylor were pictured together in a photo posted on April 22 (above) on Taylor's Facebook page

Friends: Jared Fogle and Russell Taylor were pictured together in a photo posted on April 22 (above) on Taylor's Facebook page

Close: On April 29, Taylor's home was raided on suspicion of child pornography and authorities found over 400 videos of underage boys and girls (Fogle and Taylor above in June 2011)

Close: On April 29, Taylor's home was raided on suspicion of child pornography and authorities found over 400 videos of underage boys and girls (Fogle and Taylor above in June 2011)

Bloomberg is also reporting that just weeks before Fogle's home was raided, Subway was beginning the process of rebranding Fogle as a family man. 

It was also revealed on Thursday that a cameo Fogle filmed for the upcoming Sharknado 3 has been cut from the film.  

According to court documents detailing the April 29 raid on Taylor's Indianapolis home, the videos they found featured children as young as 9 years old.

Investigators wrote that many of the videos appeared to be shot in bedrooms and bathrooms at Taylor's former and current homes.

Taylor is the former executive director of the Jared Foundation, focused on raising awareness of childhood obesity. 

'Many of these videos showed the exposed genitals or pubic area of the children,' court records report, adding that the 'minors did not appear to be aware that they were being filmed.'

So far, four minors have been identified as victims in the case.

Some of the videos were found on thumb drives in Taylor's office which appeared to have a link to Fogle or his foundation.

Police wrote that one drive contained 'commercially made child pornography from Eastern Europe similar to that seized on other investigations' and 'revealed a document field with Taylor's employer listed in the file name.'

The seized 'videos of child pornography and child erotica were recovered as were documents related to his employment as director of a foundation,' court documents detail.

Jared Fogle
Jared Fogle

Trouble: Earlier this week, authorities also raided Fogle's home (Fogle during the raid above) though he has not been charged at this time

Bad news: Subway dropped Fogle as their spokesman soon after the raid

Bad news: Subway dropped Fogle as their spokesman soon after the raid

Authorities first started investigating Taylor after receiving a tip from a woman who had been exchanging sexual text messages with the suspect.

She became concerned and called police after Taylor sent her a message, asking if she wanted to see pictures of young girls.

And there were also concerns Taylor had an interest in bestiality, according to court documents, which state that he sent an unnamed person images showing a 'dog licking the nude genital area of an adult female'.

However, Taylor has not been charged with any crimes related to bestiality.

Following Taylor's arrest, the Jared Foundation cut all ties with the former executive director and Fogle issued a statement saying he was 'shocked' by the allegations.

Taylor was formally charged in court on May 4 with seven counts of producing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography, and ordered held at the Marion County jail.

He attempted suicide while behind bars on May 6, but survived and was rushed to an Indianapolis area hospital to be put on life support. 

Taylor (mugshot above) is the former executive director of the Jared Foundation, focused on raising awareness of childhood obesity

Taylor (mugshot above) is the former executive director of the Jared Foundation, focused on raising awareness of childhood obesity

Authorities have not yet confirmed if there is a connection between the Taylor case and the search of Fogle's Zionsville, Indiana home on Tuesday.

Investigators with the FBI, State Police and Postal Service showed up at the home around 6:30am Tuesday morning to conduct the raid, after Fogle's wife and two young children left for the day.

Fogle was detained outside the home while they worked for hours bringing computer hard-drives and other electronics and documents out of the house and into a waiting police trailer for analysis.

An FBI spokesman confirmed that the agency is conducting a criminal investigation in the area, but would not comment further on the search.

However, law enforcement sources did confirm that Fogle is indeed a suspect in a child pornography investigation.

Fogle's attorney Ron Elberger also confirmed the FBI search, saying 'Jared has been cooperating with law enforcement in its investigation of certain unspecified activities and looks forward to its conclusion.' 

Just hours after the special task-force served the weight-loss icon with a search warrant, Subway ended its more than 15-year relationship with the spokesman. 

Fogle became a household name in the the late 1990s, when he lost 245 pounds eating an all-Subway diet and started working as a spokesman for the company - going on to amass a $15million fortune.

He is now married with two children.  

Fogle has not been charged with any crimes at this time. 

 

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