A former elementary school teacher who produced pornographic images of a 15-year-old ex-student was sentenced on May 13 to 30 years in federal prison.

Sean David Sigler, 56, of Burbank, was sentenced by United States District Judge John A. Kronstadt, who described Sigler’s conduct as “inexcusable.” Sigler, who pleaded guilty in September 2019 to two counts of production of child pornography, previously taught fifth-grade students at Bret Harte Elementary School in Burbank and Gardner Street Elementary School in Hollywood, where he first met the victim, according to authorities.

Sigler was the victim’s fifth-grade teacher and kept in contact with her after she advanced to higher grades. Authorities said he used his position as a former teacher and mentor to gain the trust of the victim and her parents, and then sexually assaulted the girl. Sigler also created multiple sexually explicit videos of the victim and took sexually explicit photographs. The crimes took place between September 2016 and May 2017.

Sigler also created child pornography by modifying a pornographic image of the victim with the face of a different former student who was also a minor. Authorities found the image during a January 2018 search of Sigler’s digital devices, which contained more than 5,000 images of child pornography.

As part of the sentence, Sigler agreed to forfeit $271,506 seized by the government, which constitutes proceeds from the sale of a home where he produced child pornography. United States Homeland Security Investigations and the Burbank Police Department investigated the crimes.