BALTIMORE, MD — A former Columbia youth gymnastics teacher will serve at least five years in prison after he pleaded guilty Monday to distributing child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland.

Daniel Bollinger, 57, of the 7600 block of Gladstone Road in Windsor Mill, taught gymnastics for more than 30 years, most recently at Top Flight Gymnastics on Red Branch Road in Columbia. Bollinger was charged after he shared video files online in May with an undercover Baltimore County detective that depicted youth sex acts, officials said.

Authorities traced his IP address, executed a search warrant at his residence and found more than 40,000 images and 100 videos of child pornography on his electronic devices, according to his plea agreement. There were also 100 pages of handwritten stories about a man having sex with children, which Bollinger told officials he wrote while he masturbated.

While executing a search warrant at his home, officials said they found Bollinger's computer in the midst of distributing child pornography using a peer-to-peer file sharing program, and the wallpaper on his computer showed a naked girl on her stomach. A Nikon camera in his home had pictures of his students on it.

"Photographs of girls Bollinger coached in gymnastics were found throughout the residence, including on display on walls and shelves," the plea agreement states.

Bollinger told law enforcement he has had an "obsession" with child pornography since 1990; he prefers 8 to 12-year-old girls, the age group he coached in gymnastics; and he is attracted to the "body type" of girls he coaches but has not had inappropriate contact with them, according to his plea agreement.

