Shop teacher/soccer coach faces sex assault allegations

Gary Charles Wegner

LAKEWOOD – Police detectives arrested a Dunstan Middle School teacher Thursday, accusing him of sexual assault on a child by a person in a position of trust as a pattern, according to an LPD spokesman.

Charges of criminal behavior as a pattern indicate more than one incident allegedly took place.

Teacher Gary Charles Wegner, 41, also could face the several charges of harassment stemming from “what detectives believe to have been inappropriate behavior on the part of the teacher,” according to police spokesman Steve Davis.

Wegner was taken into custody Thursday afternoon after detectives completed their investigation and interviews into allegations that Wegner had inappropriately touched several female middle school students, Davis said.

Wegner was booked into the Jefferson County Jail and is scheduled to be advised of the charges against him at 10 a.m. Friday in a Jefferson County courtroom, but Davis said that appearance could be delayed because Thursday was a court holiday.

Davis said Wegner has been on administrative leave from the Jefferson County School District since early October, when detectives launched their investigation. Wegner has been a teacher at Dunstan Middle School for about eight years. He was a shop teacher at Dunstan and he coached boy’s soccer at Green Mountain High School.

Police were contacted after a student contacted a Dunstan M.S. school counselor, saying he was a victim and describing Wegner’s alleged behavior. “Due to the nature of the charges and the juvenile status of the victims, no further details are available at this time,” Davis said.

Although Davis would not comment further, the Sheriff’s Office lists “Harassment Strikes Shoves Kicks Touches (sic)” as a secondary offense.

Police urge anyone who might have information that would assist investigators with the case detectives to call the Lakewood Police Department at 303-987-7111.