FBI takes David Finkel into custody, in court Monday afternoon

Monday, June 16, 2025 at 10:32 AM

P.M. update on this news story:

David Finkel was scheduled for a Monday court appearance regarding a federal child pornographic investigation.

Finkel faces federal charges including possession of child pornography and sexual exploitation.

The investigation into Finkel dates back to the spring of 2024 when a woman found sexually explicit images and videos on her child’s phone.

The investigation determined it was a group chat that involved and adult woman named “Emma.” The investigation has now linked “Emma” as David Finkel.

Several messages and images of an explicit nature were found and that led to the FBI agents serving their search warrant on June 5.

A.M. news story:

David Finkel was taken into custody this morning on a federal arrest warrant.

The FBI did not confirm the nature of the investigation.

Finkel’s residences were searched on June 5 in Shelbyville. No arrests were made at that point.

In the interim, Finkel stepped away from his director’s position at the Strand Theatre in downtown Shelbyville and resigned his position as a Shelbyville Central Schools board member.

“As this is an ongoing investigation, we are unable to provide any additional information at this time,” said Chris Bavender of the FBI Indianapolis Division.

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