Prosecutors Lay Out Case Against Former ’90 Day Fiancé’ Cast Member Michael Eloshway Ahead of Trial
A former 90 Day Fiancé cast member is heading to court.
Michael Eloshway, 42, who appeared on season 1 of the TLC reality series, will go to trial on July 22 in Cleveland on child pornography charges. Authorities say they found thousands of disturbing images on Eloshway’s computer during a 2023 raid. He has pleaded not guilty.
Former ’90 Day Fiancé’ cast member faces up to 20 years in prison
In court filings, federal prosecutors laid out their case against Eloshway, whom they say had more than 7,000 images and videos depicting the sexual assault of children on his laptop.
The FBI began looking into Eloshway in March 2023, after it traced a large amount of child sexual abuse material to an IP address associated with the former reality TV personality. In May 2023, agents raided Eloshway’s Twinsburg, Ohio, home. They seized several electronic devices, including the laptop containing the illegal material, according to a report from the Cleveland Plain Dealer. More than 4,500 of the files found on the laptop depicted “sadism and masochism,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer King wrote in a court filing.
Eloshway told investigators that he would download large batches of pornography and then delete any child pornography he found. According to the filing, he sent dozens of the files depicting child sexual assault directly to law enforcement.
Eloshway was charged with one count of receiving and one count of possessing child pornography. In June, he rejected a deal that would have required him to plead guilty and serve between 12 and 15 years in prison. If convicted at trial, he faces between 17 years and 5 months and 20 years in prison.
Eloshway appeared on ’90 Day Fiancé Season 1 with Aziza Mazhidova
Eloshway was one of the original 90 Day Fiancé cast members. He appeared in season 1 with his now-wife, Aziza Mazhidova, which aired in 2014.
Eloshway met Mazhidova, who is from Russia, on a language-learning site. He was 31 at the time. She was 21.
“We’ve waited so long for this and I want everything to be right,” Eloshway said of bringing his then-girlfriend to the U.S. on a K-1 visa.
The couple eventually married. They welcomed their first child, a daughter, in 2019. It’s not known if they are still together.
How to get help: If you or someone you know has been sexually abused, text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 for free and confidential support.
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