Breaking: Winter Haven High School Robotics Teacher Arrested for Sexual Battery of 15-Year-Old Student, School District Issues Statement
Winter Haven, Fla. – A Winter Haven High School robotics teacher and tennis coach was arrested Thursday after a Polk County Sheriff’s Office investigation revealed he had sexually battered a 15-year-old student multiple times, officials said.
Otis Cutshaw, 55, of Winter Haven, was booked into the Sheriff’s Processing Center on July 23, 2026, facing more than 30 charges, including five counts of sexual battery by a custodial figure, five counts of traveling to meet a minor, seven counts of transmission of harmful material to a minor, eight counts of possession of obscene material depicting a minor, child pornography, lewd molestation, and tampering with physical evidence.
The investigation began July 22 after authorities discovered the victim was in an inappropriate relationship with the suspect. The two communicated through messaging apps including GroupMe, and the victim told detectives the sexual relationship began after school ended in May 2026, with encounters occurring frequently at the start of summer and then daily in the week before the arrest.
Messages on the victim’s phone appeared deleted, but forensic analysis recovered substantial history. During a recorded call with the victim while detectives were present, Cutshaw asked what she had told law enforcement so they could match their stories.
Cutshaw admitted to detectives that he traveled to the victim’s residence on approximately five occasions while her parents were away, engaged in sexual acts with her, exchanged explicit photos and videos, gave her gifts, and deleted their messages when he learned deputies were coming. He also told investigators he remains hopeful he will one day marry the 15-year-old. Cutshaw is married with two children.
Polk County Public Schools Superintendent Fred Heid announced Cutshaw’s termination Thursday.
“We are disgusted to hear that someone entrusted with educating and protecting children has been arrested for such unacceptable behavior,” Heid said. “We are terminating his employment, and he will have no further involvement with our students.”
Charges in an arrest do not constitute a finding of guilt. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Source: “High School Teacher and Tennis Coach Arrested for Sexual Relationship with Student,” Polk County Sheriff’s Office, polksheriff.org, July 23, 2026
