LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A former elementary school teacher who taught in Burbank and Hollywood is expected to be sentenced today to multiple years behind bars for making pornographic images and videos of two of his ex-students.
Sean D. Sigler, 56, of Burbank pleaded guilty two years ago to two felony counts of production of child pornography, according to the U.S.
Attorney's Office. Each count carries a sentence of 15 to 30 years in prison.
Sigler, whom a federal grand jury indicted in May 2018, previously taught fifth-grade students at Bret Harte Elementary School in Burbank and at Gardner Street Elementary School in Hollywood.
He became involved in the first victim's personal life after the child left Sigler's classroom. He then used his position as former teacher, mentor and father figure to gain the trust of the girl and her parent.
Over the course of 15 months, Sigler regularly transported the girl to his home, where he gave her alcohol and pills and then photographed and filmed sexual activity with her. Sigler began having sex with the girl when she was just 15 years old, according to papers filed in Los Angeles federal court.
Sigler admitted in his plea agreement that he created multiple sexually explicit videos of the girl, and that he also took sexually explicit photographs of her, beginning when she was 15. He acknowledged that some of child pornography he created included images and videos involving sadomasochistic conduct.
Sigler also created child pornography by modifying a pornographic image of the girl's body and digitally superimposing the face of a second underage former student. Sigler's digital devices contained numerous images and videos of his sexual acts with the victim, as well as more than 5,000 images of child pornography depicting unknown pre-pubescent minors, according to court documents.
As part of his plea agreement, Sigler agreed to forfeit $271,506 in cash seized by the government, which constitutes the proceeds from the sale of the home where he produced child pornography.