Former Pinellas County teacher, 32-year-old Kyle Handfield was arrested Saturday, February 5th, 2022, on three counts of sexual battery by a custodial authority. As of the arrest, he was teaching in Pasco County.
The Investigation
An investigation carried out by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office found that Handfield had a relationship with a 14-year-old female student in 2017 and 2018 while he was a teacher at Pinellas Park Middle School. The investigation first began on January 7th, 2022, after detectives were informed of the relationship.
Detectives found that Handfield communicated with the victim through social media. She told Pinellas County detectives that Handfield engaged in inappropriate sexual activity with her while she was his student at Pinellas Park Middle School. The victim’s statement was corroborated, and detectives arrested Handfield around noon on Saturday, February 5th, 2022.
Kyle Handfield was a teacher at Pinellas Park Middle school from March 2015 to August 2020. Since August 2020, he has been employed with Pasco County Schools at Fivay High School.
Charges
Handfield is charged with three counts of sexual battery by a custodial authority. According to court records, Handfield has no prior arrests in Pinellas, Pasco, or Hillsborough counties and detectives are not aware of any other victims.
Fivay High School principal Jason Joens posted to the school’s Facebook page about the arrest and stated that Handfield has been placed on administrative leave.
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