Iowa Barnstormers AAU basketball program co-founder Greg Stephen is at the center of a child pornography investigation. Stephen, a 42-year old coach, launched the esteemed program over a decade ago and has coached most of the top high school basketball players in Iowa.
According to court records, a contractor at Stephen’s Monticello home found a video recording device in his bathroom and turned it over to police. This device contained “video clips of young, non-adult male individuals disrobing to the point of nudity.” Police also commented that these videos appeared to be taken in a hotel bathroom and that the players were not aware.
The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation then obtained search warrants for both of Stephen’s homes in Monticello and Delhi. Computers, cell phones, hard drives and cameras were taken from his home. iPhones and an iMac from his workplace, Stephen Motor Inc. were also seized. Court documents reveal that over 100 explicit video clips were found.
The Des Moines Register contacted current and former members of the Barnstormers and received information that Stephen had engaged in sexual behavior with a former player. The former player commented that Stephen slept in the same bed as the players often and last summer, the player woke up to Stephen masturbating next to him. The player was 14-years-old at the time and commented that he has not heard of inappropriate behavior with anyone else.
This investigation has caused co-director and co-founder Jamie Johnson to question Stephen saying, “Was [Stephen] really into basketball to help kids and it turned into something else? Or was this something sinister to get close to kids? I don’t even know. I just can’t wrap my mind around it.” Among Johnson’s shock is top University of Iowa recruit Patrick McCaffery who tweeted, “sick to my stomach.” McCaffery, along many other top players, was coached by Stephen for many years.
On February 22, Iowa Barnstormers tweeted that Stephen is no longer affiliated with their organization. The club also shared that they emailed all families and encouraged all current and former players to contact the DCI if they had any information.
