A bus driver for was arrested Thursday on suspicion of felony sexual assault on a child, the Lakewood Police Department announced Friday.
Police accuse Robert Charles Watters, 64, of having an inappropriate relationship with a 10-year-old student. He is being held at the Jefferson County jail, the police department said Friday.
Watters has worked as a bus driver for Jeffco Public Schools, the state’s second largest-district, since 2018. He has driven Hutchinson Elementary students on the C-31 bus route since August 2023 and before that he drove the school’s C-49 route between 2021-23.
Jeffco Public Schools placed Watters on administrative leave on March 4, which prohibits the bus driver from contacting students, staff and families, the district said in a letter sent to Hutchinson families on Thursday. “We have begun the termination process, which requires certain steps under our collective bargaining agreement,” district officials said in the letter.
The district’s Title IX team is also working with Lakewood police to support the student and Hutchinson’s mental health staff are also on hand for pupils who need support, Jeffco Public School officials said in the letter.
“It is critical that we identify victims so that we can provide the appropriate resources and supports,” the letter read.
Lakewood Police ask that anyone with information about Watters, including whether they have been a victim, to contact the department’s tip line at 303-763-6800.
