Former Loften High School Student Convicted of Sex Offense
A former student at Loften High School, Jack Cheves, 18, was convicted of lewd or lascivious exhibition last week following a no contest plea.
Cheves will spend roughly six months in jail, as he received a nine-month sentence but gets credit for 98 days he already served.
Facing a maximum prison sentence of 15 years, Cheves took a plea deal that was accepted by Judge David Kreider.
Court records show Cheves was facing 26 sex offense charges across three different cases; however, all but one were dropped by the State Attorney’s Office. Many of the charges were dropped as part of Cheves' plea deal.
In December 2024, the victim was visiting the witness’ home. During this time, the witness FaceTimed Cheves, and he was introduced to the victim. Cheves continued a relationship with the victim despite the unlawful age gap, with her being in middle school.
Gainesville Police Department Detective Desiree Russano reported that her investigation found “over 180 felony violations of Florida Statutes, specifically for the sexual abuse of children under the age of 16, committed by [Cheves] as it pertains to both the victim and witness,” a striking contrast to what the State Attorney’s Office decided to prosecute.
When Cheves FaceTimed the minor victim, he would often perform sexual acts on camera without her consent and pressure her to do the same.
Although they were later dropped, Cheves was charged with multiple counts of possession of obscene material because he saved the sexual videos he pressured the victim to send.
The victim told police that Cheves sexually assaulted her in a classroom before winter break. It's unclear why Cheves was in the same classroom with the victim when he was 18 and she was 13.
During another incident that occurred in January, Cheves committed statutory sexual battery against the victim after they met up at the Oaks Mall. Cheves reportedly made references to the incident over Snapchat messages, but state attorneys didn't pursue sexual battery charges.
In a text message, the victim told the witness she felt like Cheves manipulated and took advantage of her.
Cheves will be placed under sex offender probation for three years after his release.
