Punta Gorda teacher sentenced to 60 years in prison for sexually exploiting children and child porn

PUNTA GORDA, Fla. —

A former Punta Gorda Middle School teacher, Charlotte High School assistant basketball coach and Dominican national basketball player was sentenced to 60 years in prison for sexually exploiting children and child pornography Monday.

According to the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office and court documents, Dagoberto Pena has been sentenced to a combined 60 years in the Bureau of Prisons on counts of sexual exploitation of children and activities relating to material constituting/containing child pornography with a lifetime of supervision.

Pena was federally indicted on four charges related to child pornography. He pled guilty in January and was sentenced on April 27.

This came after Pena was first arrested in April 2025 after being accused of committing sexual battery on a student. The sheriff's office received a call from a parent after she discovered conversations between him and her child on the child's phone.

The Punta Gorda Police Department stepped in to investigate since it was in their jurisdiction. Search warrants were obtained on Pena's personal and work phones, which led to investigators discovering graphic images, text messages and videos reportedly between him and multiple victims.

Pena was arrested again in July 2025 after he was accused of sex crimes involving a second victim.

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