He was apparently looking for a deal, but a 25-year-old Wanamingo man ended up getting more than he bargained for Dec. 14 after responding to an online ad for an adult escort.
The man allegedly called a woman named Shauna, a false identity used by an undercover officer, and said he wanted to meet her. She had a photo and phone number posted on backpage.com , a classified ads website that includes an adult escort section. The officer told the man her rates, and he asked if she could lower her price. She told him they could discuss it when they met. At the hotel room, she agreed to accept $100 for a sexual act that he allegedly requested.
The suspect gave the undercover officer the money, according to police, and was then arrested for hiring a prostitute.
The arrest, detailed in a criminal complaint, is one of six the Rochester Police Department made Dec. 14 and 15 in an operation targeting prostitutes and their clients.
The web-focused prostitution sting was the largest of its kind so far in Rochester. It comes at a time when police across the country are cracking down on Internet prostitution, with similar stings recently taking place in Illinois, Arizona and Montana. Full details of the Rochester operation weren't clear until earlier this month, when criminal charges were filed in Olmsted County District Court against the final two suspects.
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Authorities have known about Internet-based prostitution in Rochester for some time, said Lt. Casey Moilanen. It was just recently, however, when a restructuring of the police department freed up time and resources to conduct a detailed sting operation, he said.
"As long as it's out there and we have these resources, we're going to continue to conduct these operations," Moilanen said.
The six December arrests included three alleged prostitutes and three men who are accused of offering to pay an undercover officer for sexual acts. The female suspects range in age from 19 to 23; one lists a North Dakota address and the others have no permanent address. The men range in age from 25 to 55. Besides the Wanamingo man, they listed addresses in Pepin, Wis., and Waltham, a small town in Mower County.
Three convictions have resulted from the sting so far, one for prostitution and two for hiring a prostitute. Warrants have been issued for two alleged prostitutes who haven't appeared in court. The Wanamingo man is scheduled to make his first court appearance on March 10.
The nine arrests Rochester police made for prostitution last year equal the total number of prostitution arrests from the previous nine years combined.
