Jonathan Utin, 64, of Blacksburg Confessed to Inappropriate Relationships with Children over a 30-Year Period, Ohio Police Say
By Tonia Moxley and Shawna Morrison
The Roanoke Times
September 22, 2006
http://www.roanoke.com/news/nrv/wb/83803
Blacksburg -- A retired Blacksburg teacher charged with molesting a child confessed to inappropriate relationships with other children over a 30-year period, Ohio police said Thursday.
Detective Fred Shuemake of the Middletown (Ohio) Police Department said Jonathan Utin, 64, molested a girl in Blacksburg and Middletown and that she was not his only victim.
Utin, who was a beloved teacher at Blacksburg Middle School and was involved in numerous community and church activities, is to be arraigned today in Middletown.
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| Jonathan Utin |
"The town is just abuzz about this," said Jerry Diffell, whose adult daughter was once a student of Utin's. "We all had children that were involved with Jon Utin."
A search warrant issued in Montgomery County lists the girl in the Ohio case as 13 years old. Shuemake said the girl was 12. He said he did not know how many other children might have been victimized.
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Jon Utin, as a sixth-grade teacher, breaks up a a concrete block that was unearthed in search of a time capsule in the front lawn of Blacksburg Middle School on Main Street in Blacksburg Friday May 31 2002. The search was unsuccessful. Photo by The Roanoke Times(5/31/02) |
Utin was arrested Monday in Blacksburg and taken to Ohio to face a felony charge of gross sexual imposition. According to Blacksburg police, the charge is akin to what's called aggravated sexual battery of a child in Virginia.
Blacksburg police are investigating the possibility that Utin may have committed crimes in Virginia as well, and are asking residents with information to come forward.
According to the search warrant, Utin told police he had a fixation with girls ages 3 to 9. He admitted to having "several inappropriate relationships with minors spanning a 30-year period," the warrant said.
He was extremely remorseful and had kept in touch with some of the victims to ensure their well-being, the warrant said.
Police searching Utin's house Tuesday took away photo albums and computers, among other items. According to the warrant, Utin said he "viewed various pornographic Web sites on the Internet."
A native of Oxfordshire, England, Utin was a kicker on the Virginia Tech football team from 1965-67. His holder was Frank Beamer, now the Hokies' head coach.
Utin taught science and math to Montgomery County middle-schoolers from 1968 to 2003, when he retired.
He was known for the annual "dairy show" he put on for decades, taking Blacksburg sixth-graders to Virginia Tech's barns to teach them about calves.
Video courtesy of WCPO in Cincinnati, Ohio
He coached gymnastics, led star-gazing trips and regularly won praise from parents and students. Some parents would fight to get their children in Utin's classes, Diffell said. But others sometimes had vague suspicions about his constant involvement with children.
"He was a little weird. But he was so dedicated and the kids adored him," Diffell said. "Were we complete fools? Were we complete idiots that we didn't see this?"
After retiring, Utin apparently worked occasionally as a substitute teacher in the county, Montgomery County school board member Wat Hopkins said.
Schools Superintendent Tiffany Anderson did not return a phone call or an e-mail seeking comment Thursday.
But in a letter sent home to parents, she wrote: "No incidents involving the individual have been reported to the Montgomery County School Board or human resources."
"Personally, I am appalled and disgusted by the alleged incidents that are being reported involving the retired teacher.
"I have young children in the school system, and I believe our schools are safe," the letter continued.
Utin was also involved in many civic activities. In 2002, he served as grand marshal of Blacksburg's Fourth of July parade and won town civic beautification awards for his house and garden on Toms Creek Road.
He taught Sunday school at Christ Episcopal Church and was a manager at the Shawnee Swim Club. The warrant alleges that Utin molested the Ohio girl at the swim club and at his home.
No church members ever complained about Utin, Christ Church interim Rector Elizabeth Morgan said.
But about a month ago someone did complain to her about an incident from 30 years ago involving Utin. The incident did not happen at Christ Church, Morgan said.
Morgan declined to say what the incident was or to identify who reported it.
But in response to the complaint, Morgan said she asked all adults in the church who work with children to fill out a self-disclosure form listing any previous crimes or allegations, as the policies of the Episcopal Diocese of Southwest Virginia require.
The church also began conducting background checks on its adult leaders, Morgan said. Similar checks conducted by police and The Roanoke Times turned up no criminal records on Utin.
Church officials are reviewing their response to the 30-year-old complaint to make sure all policies were followed, diocesan spokeswoman Christie Wills said.
Morgan sent an e-mail to church members Thursday encouraging anyone with information to come forward, Wills said.
Neff Powell, bishop of the diocese, said that "my heart goes out to all the victims and their families" and said he is "absolutely committed to safe, healthy and wholesome churches."
For several years diocesan policy has been that no adult is left alone with a child, Powell said. "We've worked so hard on this. It's just horrible."
News researcher Belinda Harris contributed to this report.
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