A 51-year-old former Apopka High School teacher who sexually battered an Italian foreign exchange student in his Mount Dora home will spend the rest of his life behind bars.
On Wednesday, August 21, Dmitri Kostyunin was sentenced in a Lake County courtroom to life in prison without the possibility of parole, four months after he was found guilty of the following charges: engaging in an act that constitutes sexual battery upon a child 12 years of age or older but younger than 18 years of age by a person in familial or custodial authority, contributing to the delinquency of a minor, and delivery of cannabis to a person under the age of 18 years by an adult.
According to court records, the Lake County Sheriff’s Office was contacted in October of 2023 by Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) agents regarding an incident involving Kostyunin and a foreign exchange student from Italy.
The student told family members back home about the sexual abuse committed by Kostyunin. Shortly after the student’s family contacted law enforcement, LCSO detectives responded to Apopka High School and met the victim regarding the allegations. The victim stated that they had been residing with their foreign exchange provider, identified as Kostyunin, since August of 2023.
The victim told detectives that Kostyunin had given them “cannabis-infused chocolates and alcohol” one night while watching a movie together. Court records state that Kostyunin proceeded to commit sexual battery on the student while they were under the influence of both substances.
When detectives made contact with Kostyunin and conducted an interview, he admitted to giving the student the cannabis-infused chocolate, as well as wine and beer. He then stated that he “blacked out” and woke up the next day, realizing that he “made a mistake.”
Kostyunin was arrested and taken into custody on October 3, 2023.
Following Kostyunin’s sentencing on Wednesday, Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney Bill Gladson released the following statement: “The defendant’s actions violated the trust placed in him and severely impacted the well-being of a child without our community. I am grateful that he now will spend the rest of his life behind bars, unable to harm another child.”
The case against Kostyunin was successfully prosecuted by Assistant State Attorneys Kati Cosden and Chelsey Omega.