Why did authorities raid the home of Jared Fogle, Subway pitchman?

Subway spokesman Jared Fogle lost 235 pounds eating Subway sandwiches and exercising. On Tuesday morning, police raided his Indiana home. 

Jared Fogle is known by many as the man who appeared on several Subway commercials and smiled brightly from advertisements featuring pictures of him holding up his size 62 pants. 

The Indiana native reportedly lost 235 pounds simply by eating Subway sandwiches and exercising while he was attending Indiana University. He founded the Jared Foundation in 2004, a non-profit that provides programs intended to encourage children to eat well and exercise.

So why did police investigators raid his upscale Indiana home on Tuesday morning?

An emailed statement released by Subway said the restaurant chain was shocked by recent events and thought the probe might be related to a “prior investigation of a former Jared Foundation employee.”

Former executive director of the Jared Foundation, Russell Taylor, was arrested in April on charges of child exploitation, possession of child pornography, and voyeurism, reported Fox News.

According to a report by USA TODAY, a woman was exchanging texts of a sexual nature with Mr. Taylor when she says that he asked if she’d like to see pictures of young girls. His question worried her, she said, and she contacted police.

Investigators from the Indiana Crimes Against Children Task Force say that they found more than 400 videos of child pornography on computers and other digital media in Taylor’s home.

Mr. Fogle released a statement shortly after the incident saying his foundation would be “severing ties” with the former director: “I was shocked to learn of the disturbing allegations against Mr. Taylor. Effective immediately, the Jared Foundation is severing all ties with Mr. Taylor.”

On Tuesday morning, Fogle was photographed getting out of a police evidence van parked in his driveway and leading law enforcement officials into his home. It’s unclear why law enforcement officers were on the scene, but the Subway statement suggests it might have something to do with Taylor’s April arrest.

"Jared has been cooperating, and continues to cooperate, with law enforcement in their investigation of unspecified charges and looks forward to its conclusion," attorney Ron Elberger said in an email to IndyStar.com. "He has not been detained, arrested or charged with any crime or offense."

The Indy Star reported that FBI, Indiana State Police, and Postal Service officers were seen removing electronics, documents, and other items and loading them into an evidence truck parked in the driveway.

As of Tuesday afternoon, there were over 110,000 tweets about Subway, mostly dark humor but some expressing their concern about jumping to conclusions:

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