By Jen Lebron Kuhney

Tuesday, February 1, 2011 at 3:31 p.m.

A San Diego County figure skating instructor suspected of videotaping a girl taking a shower at his San Marcos home in 2007 has been arrested in a small city outside of Boston.

Marc Mandina, 41, was arrested Friday in Leominster on suspicion of possessing child pornography. The San Diego County Sheriff's Department had issued a warrant for his arrest. The investigation began in 2008 after a family member found the videotape of the 12-year-old girl and reported it to authorities.

Sheriff's Detective Victoria Reden said Mandina and the girl's father had been friends for years so it was not unusual that the girl would be at his home. She was unaware Mandina was taping her while she showered, Reden said.

After the tape was found, Reden said, Mandina admitted to the girl's father in a text message that he had taken the video and kept it for "personal use."

Mandina, a French competitive figure skater in the early 1990s, taught students at various ice skating rinks in San Diego County, including the San Diego Ice Arena in Mira Mesa, according to an older version of the rink's website.

He coached a seminar with the Puerto Rican Figure Skating Federation in October and was recently in negotiations for a job to coach permanently for it.

In late December, however, he stopped returning phone calls, said Cesar Bonilla, the group's executive director.

"I can't believe that he would do something like this," Bonilla said. "I didn't see anything like the accusations while he was here."

Originally from France, Mandina is a legal U.S. resident. He is a member of the Professional Skaters Association and was in the process of having his coaching certifications sent to him from California when he was arrested in Massachusetts, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.

He waived his right Monday to fight his return to San Diego County, according to the Sentinel & Enterprise, a newspaper that covers Leominster. He is being held on $50,000 cash bail.

He is expected to be arraigned in Vista Superior Court in a couple of weeks, Reden said.