LARIMER COUNTY, Colo. — A former Larimer County middle school teacher has been sentenced to 16 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to sexually exploiting a child.
Robert Denise, who taught social studies at Cache La Poudre Middle School and was a leader at a Boy Scout ranch, was arrested on April 16, 2023 after one of his students reported being abused.
After the arrest, four more victims came forward saying they were also abused by Denise.
"Unfortunately, due to the statute of limitations, our office could not prosecute the oldest two offenses," the 8th Judicial District Attorney's Office said in a release. "The bravery of these victims, including those whose crimes are not eligible for prosecution, cannot be overstated."
Denise had been employed by Poudre School District as a teacher since 1995. He also worked at the Ben Delatour Scout Ranch in Red Feather Lakes during summers in the 1990s.
One of the victims who came forward told investigators that he had been groomed by Denise before he was sexually assaulted.
"The grooming in this case is the most extensive I’ve ever seen,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Luke Birky during Denise's sentencing hearing. “The defendant went out of his way to ensure he had constant access to teenage boys and targeted ‘troubled boys’ as a way to further his manipulation.”
The victim also told investigators that prior to the assault, he had disclosed to Denise that he had been sexually abused years earlier. There is no indication that Denise, a mandatory reporter, ever provided this information to school administrators or law enforcement.
Denise was initially charged with a total of four counts of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust related to three different victims who were all under 16 when the abuse occurred. He also faced a charge of failure to report child abuse.
He pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of a child on April 4. Following the 16 year prison sentence, Denise was sentenced to 10 years of sex offender intensive supervision probation.
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