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SOUTH OGDEN — A middle school teacher has been arrested and accused of abusing two girls at his school and soliciting nude photos.
Drew Daniel Tutt, 29, of Plain City, was arrested Monday for investigation of aggravated sexual abuse of a child, sexual abuse of a minor, two counts of enticing a minor and two counts of unlawful detention.
The alleged victims in this case are both under 16, said Weber County Sheriff's Lt. Nate Hutchinson. The investigation began in October when a Weber County sheriff’s deputy found Tutt and a young girl in a car at a Weber County park about 2:30 a.m.
"They claimed they were just out talking. The patrol deputy, obviously, thought it was inappropriate and suspicious and passed it along to our detectives who opened up a case and investigated it," he said.
At the time, the deputy did not observe any criminal activity, and no arrest was made.
However, Ogden School District spokesman Jer Bates said when the district was notified on Oct. 10 of the ongoing investigation, Tutt was immediately placed on administrative leave and then resigned that same day.
Tutt was a teacher at Mound Fort Junior High School, which has students in seventh through ninth grade. Neither police nor the school district have disclosed which classes he taught.
Tutt was still on "provisional status" at the time of his resignation, meaning he had been with the district for less than three years. He has no prior criminal history outside of traffic tickets, according to court records.
Between October and Monday, Hutchinson said numerous search warrants were served and students interviewed. He said Tutt was "not cooperative" with the investigation. No charges have been filed against him.
Detectives believe that for several months, Tutt would encourage his alleged victims to sneak out of their homes and meet him. At first, he would simply drive them around in his car and talk to them, Hutchinson said.
"We feel he was grooming them to the point it would become sexual in nature," he said. "We believe that there was texting as well as different social media apps, Snapchat, things like that."
Tutt would later entice the young girls to send nude photos, according to the sheriff's office. When he had sexual contact with the girls, the victims stated they couldn't leave, which is why he was arrested for investigation of unlawful detention, according to the lieutenant.
"The victims felt they were put in a situation where they were not allowed to leave," Hutchinson said. "They just didn't feel that leaving was an option."
The girls would allegedly meet Tutt at different parks around the county. Investigators have identified two victims, but Hutchinson said: "We suspect there could be more."
Anyone who believes their child may have been a victim is to call the sheriff's office at 801-395-8221.
Bates said when the allegations first came to light in October, "additional student support was put in place." The district was planning to send an additional notice to parents and families Tuesday in light of the arrest.
Bates said although everyone is innocent until proven guilty, the school district will always err on the side of caution.
