Volleyball coach at Carol Stream athletic facility faces child pornography charges
The director of an elite volleyball club faces child pornography charges after authorities said he videotaped patrons of the DuPage Training Academy in Carol Stream.
Michael Liedtke, the 34-year-old owner of Xcel Athletics, has been charged with two felony counts of possession of child pornography and two felony counts of unauthorized videotaping.
Liedtke, of the 700 block of Parkside Circle, Streamwood, also founded the Hitmen Volleyball Club, a program with players from across the county.
A judge ordered Liedtke held in DuPage County jail on $250,000 bail. Liedtke was released Thursday after posting the required 10 percent of his bail. He has to refrain from entering the DuPage Training Academy until further order of the court, submit to electronic monitoring and have no contact with children younger than 18, among other conditions.
On Monday, Carol Stream police responded to a report of unauthorized videotaping at the training academy at 115 Alexandra Way. An investigation revealed a video camera hidden in a ceiling tile in a public bathroom at the facility, according to a news release from the state's attorney's office.
The wiring on the video camera led to a computer found in Liedtke's office. An inspection of the computer revealed numerous images of patrons, including minors, as they used the washroom, the release stated. Liedtke also is accused of possessing images of child pornography on his cellphone.
Jeff Kramer, the owner of the DuPage Training Academy, said Liedtke has rented space there for roughly four years but has no affiliation with the facility.
"It was an independent business," Kramer said.
Kramer sent a letter to academy clients Thursday morning about the charges against Liedtke. He said the drop ceiling in the bathroom was being replaced with Sheetrock Thursday.
He said Carol Stream police have told him the video camera was there for a "very short time period."
"We're doing everything we can to make this a safe and trusting environment for kids and parents," Kramer said. "We've been in business for 18 years."
Liedtke turned himself in to Carol Stream police Wednesday. Deputy Police Chief John Jungers said the academy is "cooperating fully" with the ongoing investigation.
Police have found no other cameras in inappropriate locations, Junger said.
He could not say how many images have been found but added that investigators "have an awful lot" of computer forensic work to do to determine the breadth and scope of the case.
Liedtke has no prior criminal history, Jungers said.
"The allegations against Mr. Liedtke are, in a word, sickening," DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin said in a written statement. "He allegedly violated not only the privacy of patrons at the facility, but also the trust placed in him by the parents of the athletes he trained."
Liedtke is next due in court in front of Judge Brian Telander at 9 a.m. Feb. 28.