Vet Charged With Child Porn Judged Dozens of Junior Dog Shows.
Chicago-area veterinarian Adam King was assigned to judge dozens of junior showmanship competitions, giving him access to hundreds of children, TCR has found.

A prominent, Chicago-area dog show judge and veterinarian was arrested and charged with distribution of child pornography last week, according to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. Adam Stafford King, 39, of Elburn, Illinois allegedly used the messaging app Telegram to distribute child pornography. The DOJ complaint cites numerous examples from the investigation which began in September 2023.

 

Reached by email last week, Jonathan S. Bedi, an attorney for King, declined to comment on King’s behalf.

 

King worked for MedVet as a veterinary ophthalmologist at a Chicago-area practice, according to his LinkedIn page. “Dr. Adam S. King is no longer employed by MedVet, effective March 25, 2024,” Sarah Berger, a spokesperson for MedVet told TCR.

The charges have sparked a social media firestorm.

 

“I am still honored with the win, but I am absolutely disgusted with the judge who awarded it.”

 

A dog show exhibitor and, herself, a junior competitor, Flynn Weeks posted, “I have edited my original post in which I shared my win under him,” Flynn Weeks wrote in a post on Facebook last week. He added, “I am still honored with the win, but I am absolutely disgusted with the judge who awarded it.”

 

Deb Cooper, a columnist for The Canine Chronicle (not affiliated with TCR), wrote: “Last week, our community was turned upside down…Many in the sport of purebred dogs continue to feel betrayed, angry, worried, and helpless.”

 

An assessment by TCR of King’s recent judging assignments determined that King has judged dozens of elite Junior Showman competitions around the country within the past two years, affording him access to hundreds of minor children. King’s attorney, Jonathan Bedi, declined to comment on King’s behalf when asked about King’s access to children through the junior competitions.

 

 

Alessandra Wagner, 16, told TCR through Facebook messenger, “I personally find it very disturbing that he judged junior finals at Royal Canin,” the AKC National Championship in Orlando cited extensively in the DOJ’s criminal complaint. Wagner says she is among the junior competitors whom King judged on the show circuit while he was being investigated. “I think background checks and Safesport need to be enforced for everyone involved in dogs,” she added, referring to a petition circulating online calling on the AKC to require background checks for judges.

 

With King’s veterinary license still listed as “active” and in good standing, however, it’s unclear what, if any information, a background check by the AKC or any entity would have gleaned in King’s case.

 

According to the complaint, King engaged in a series of “chats” with undercover agents and shared his “very extensive collection” of child pornography, including videos of child sex abuse. The complaint also alleges that Dr. King discussed plans with undercover FBI agents to assault and exploit his unborn son, even providing ultrasound images.

AKC: “Deeply disturbing and unacceptable.”

 

The AKC’s leadership was unaware of King’s alleged conduct and are as astonished as anyone, communications chief Brandi Hunter told TCR in a telephone interview last week. Ms. Hunter told TCR that the AKC finds the charges, “deeply disturbing and unacceptable.”

 

King’s judging assignments, including at the 2024 Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, have been suspended in accordance with AKC policy pending investigation, Ms. Hunter said in the interview with TCR.

 

In an email provided obtained by TCR sent by AKC chairman Dennis Sprung Tuesday afternoon to AKC exhibitors, Mr. Sprung said the AKC “condemned alleged criminal conduct by any participant in our sports” and “will continue to examine ways to strengthen our oversight.”

 

Gretchen Wetzel joined TCR as a business development associate while completing her MBA. Ms. Wetzel previously worked for leading U.S. pet insurer Trupanion, and continues to work in insurance – for people at The Hartford. She has pursued a passion for her unique dog breed, the Kooikerhondje, for more than 20 years and currently trains, shows, competes, and hunts with three: Braam, Casper, and Maaike. According to the American Kennel Club’s website, “The Nederlandse Kooikerhondje is lively, agile, self-confident, good-natured and alert.” Ms. Wetzel works remotely from Tennessee.