Ex-wrestling coach gets 6 years for sex crimes

A former high school wrestling coach was sentenced on March 10 to six years in prison followed by 15 years of supervised probation after pleading guilty to various sex crimes involving minors in Navajo County Superior Court last month.

The man, 40-year-old Daniel Larson who worked at Winslow High School, pleaded guilty to the following charges:

● Sexual conduct with a minor at least 15 years of age while in a position of trust.

● Attempted sexual conduct with a minor at least 15 years of age while in a position of trust.

● Three counts of public sexual indecency to a minor.

“Larsen’s recent offenses involved the frequent sexual victimization of a high school student over a period of four years, beginning in 2014 when the student was 15 years old,” the Navajo County Attorney’s Office said in a written statement. “The other three victims included in this case were Larsen’s extended family members who were young girls at the time they were victimized, beginning in the 1990’s. The youngest was five.”

The agency said Larsen will have to register as a sex offender upon release and stay away from any of his victims or children other than his own children and grandchildren.

“These crimes spanned decades and affected children ages five to 15, when the abuse of each of the four minor victims began,” Navajo County Attorney Brad Carlyon said in a written statement. “It takes courage to come forward, whether it’s been a few hours, a few years or a few decades since a crime occurred. We applaud the courage of these women and are gratified to achieve an outcome where the offender admitted his guilt in court, and a measure of justice is being served.”