The former president of USA Gymnastics is behind bars in East Tennessee after U.S. Marshals and local officers arrested him on an indictment into evidence tampering in the Larry Nassar case.
According to the U.S. Marshals Service, Steve Penny was taken into custody in Gatlinburg Wednesday night after the USMS and Smoky Mountains Fugitive Task Force Officers located him at a cabin.
Penny was booked into the Sevier County Jail and is currently awaiting extradition to Walker County, Texas to face charges. A grand jury indicted Penny for tampering with evidence during the investigation into USA Gymnastics Dr. Larry Nassar's sex abuse scandal.
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"On September 28, 2018, a Walker County Grand Jury convened to continue their ongoing investigation of the Karolyi Ranch and those individuals who may have committed offenses related to the conduct of Dr. Larry Nassar at that location. On that same day, the Grand Jury returned an indictment on Penny for Tampering with Evidence, a third degree felony," the press release said.
According to the indictment, Penny is alleged to have tampered with evidence related to the activities of Nassar at the ranch, saying it was done with the purpose of "impairing the ongoing investigation by destroying or hiding the documents."
During the investigation done by Texas Rangers and Walker County officers, the USMS said sources reported Penny ordered the removal of the documents at the ranch after learning the investigation was underway.
The investigation said the documents were delivered to Penny at the USAG HQ in Indianapolis. To day, the USMS said those records have not been recovered and their location remains unknown.
Texas Rangers said they believe those records are essential to their investigation and that by removing them, Penny prevented them from reviewing documents that would have aided in the Nassar investigation and other offenses that might have occurred at the ranch.
Members of the U.S. Marshals’ led Smoky Mountains Fugitive Task Force that were instrumental in Penny’s arrest include the Sevier County Sheriff’s Office, the Knox County Sheriff’s Office, The Blount County Sheriff’s Office, and the Knoxville Police Department.