Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
- Robert Dindinger, a former psychologist, was on Utah's licensing board radar for years.
- He faced disciplinary actions, probation, and reapplication issues before child exploitation charges.
- Dindinger was charged with 10 felony counts in 2025, revealing multiple victims and alleged misconduct.
SALT LAKE CITY — A former psychologist accused of sexually exploiting his minor patients had been on the radar of the Utah Psychologist Licensing Board for nearly a decade.
According to Utah Department of Professional Licensing documents and minutes from a Utah psychology licensing board meeting, Robert Virgil Dindinger, 54, of Spanish Fork, had a history of disciplinary actions and concerning behavior.
Probationary license
In January 2018, Dindinger admitted to the licensing board that he inappropriately touched a girl he was treating and instructed her to engage in sexual behavior while he left the office.
Dindinger claimed this was a treatment for her pornography addiction, but the board pointed out that the treatment he used is not approved for female patients, let alone girls, only male sex offenders.
During the meeting, a Psychology Licensing Board member told him he should have never even suggested that type of treatment.
The board put him on a five-year probation. The terms of that probation included stipulations that he could not treat minors, and a supervisor would check in weekly and occasionally sit in on sessions or review recordings. However, in a matter of months, the board found he violated these terms multiple times, leading to further scrutiny.
Licensing violations
On July 26, 2018, Dindinger admitted to the board that he had failed to inform his employer he was on probation, that he supervised a student treating a minor, and he worked unsupervised for several months. He also admitted to seeing minor patients after he was told he could no longer treat them, claiming he misunderstood the date when he could no longer work with them.
Dindinger expressed remorse and claimed his judgment had improved through consultation and supervision.
"My whole body's quaking. I'm trying to hold it together, you know, the gravity of this situation doesn't escape me," Dindinger is heard saying in an audio recording of the meeting. "I'm a helping person and I desire to do the best for my clients and um, and I didn't."
The board decided he could no longer practice as a therapist and took away his probationary license.
License reapplication
About four and a half years later, Dindinger reapplied for his license, requesting no restrictions.
During a board meeting in January 2023, members pressed him on his ability to recognize and prevent issues related to his conduct.
"I'm leaving this meeting without a clear answer to my very simple question about how you notice when these issues are coming up for you, and it's been five years," said a board member in the audio recording.
When pushed on his initial reason for being put on probation in 2018, Dindinger told the board he felt pressured to help his patient in any way and saw her as his daughter. A board member responded, "That's not something I would expect you would do with your daughter. And I see that is a very different kind of feeling. Um and I feel like you haven't explored that."
Dindinger claimed he had explored this and even the idea that he enjoyed getting extra attention from this client.
"It also made me feel like powerful to know that I had that kind of influence over her, right? And so, there was that piece to it. We explored that in therapy," he said.
During that meeting, the board decided to give him another five-year probationary license with several conditions, including having to write a 500-word essay on how his misconduct has impacted his patients and his practice.
But on April 17, 2024, the board told Dindinger he could no longer practice psychology, engage in any sort of mental health care or "life coaching" until allegations against him were resolved. The documents did not state what the allegations were but did state the division was investigating him for unprofessional conduct, and the Orem Police Department was investigating him for alleged conduct related to his practice.
Charges filed
On April 24, 2025, Dindinger was charged with 10 felony counts of sexual exploitation of a child and two counts of voyeurism. According to charging documents, police spoke to a woman who said Dindinger treated her between the ages of 13 and 16 and had her stand on a scale while naked when she was a patient. He also had her do sexual acts while he turned away, claiming it was treatment.
When they went to his office, an officer discovered a camera hanging from his diploma. Officers also reported finding various child sex abuse material as well as videos of the victims nude. Police identified at least five victims, as well as additional child sex abuse material.
Department of Professional Licensing's response
The Department of Professional Licensing declined KSL Investigates' request for an interview but provided a statement which said, in part, "In April 2024, upon discovering potential violations of Dindinger's probationary license, (the division) further limited Dindinger's psychology license, prohibiting him from practicing as a psychologist or providing mental health care, including offering 'life coaching' services, pending resolution of those investigations and/or criminal charges. (The division) will continue to monitor the situation closely, collaborating with law enforcement as needed, and take necessary actions to protect the public and maintain professional licensing standards."
