Between May and October 2015, area law enforcement conducted multiple sting operations, resulting in gross misdemeanor charges against 20 men for soliciting prostitution.
The operations involved the placement of a fake advertisement on a website known for its use in soliciting paid sex. Nearly all of those cases have worked their way through the court system.
One offender, who was arrested in the first sting in May 2015, pleaded guilty but has yet to be sentenced. Eugene Paul Allord, 59, of Little Falls, is scheduled for his sentencing hearing on May 4.
Another man facing charges is set to appear Feb. 13 in Crow Wing County District Court to enter a plea. That man, Chadwick Paul Schwerdtfeger, was arrested in a fifth sting occurring in Brainerd in November 2015.
The following men were sentenced for their involvement in the law enforcement stings since it was last reported:
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• Kurt Anthony Bistodeau, 36, Baxter. Bistodeau was arrested in the Brainerd sting and pleaded guilty Oct. 24, 2016. He was sentenced to two years unsupervised probation. He was ordered to attend "john school" and was ordered to pay $2,085 in fines. The schools are a collaborative effort to hold offenders accountable while helping reduce demand for prostitution.
• Alex Joseph Brown, 28, Grand Rapids. Brown was arrested in the Brainerd sting and pleaded guilty April 4, 2016. He was sentenced to two years of supervised probation. He was ordered to attend "john school" and was fined $1,760.
• Roger Louis Carriere, 36, Clarissa. Carriere was arrested in a sting conducted in Breezy Point and pleaded guilty April 4, 2016. He was sentenced to two years of supervised probation. He was ordered to attend "john school" and was fined $1,085.
• Scott David Dinham, 52, Winthrop, Wash. Dinham was arrested in the Brainerd sting and pleaded guilty April 15, 2016. He was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation, ordered to attend "john school" and was fined $2,075.
• Robert Joseph Hennen, 53, Cushing. Hennen was arrested in the Breezy Point sting and pleaded guilty Oct. 24, 2016. He was sentenced to unsupervised probation for two years, to attend "john school" and was fined $2,085.
• Kenneth Wayne Kirk, 50, Clarksville, Tenn. Kirk was arrested in June 2015 in a second sting in Baxter. Kirk pleaded guilty on July 18, 2016, to a misdemeanor charge of soliciting a prostitute 18 years or older. Kirk was placed on unsupervised probation for one year, ordered to attend "john school" and was fined $1,085.
• Jason Shepard Longhenry, 41, Motley. Longhenry was arrested in a third sting in Baxter in August 2015. He pleaded guilty Aug. 15, 2016 and was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation, to attend "john school" and was fined $2,085.
• Tyler Clark Meech, 23, Baxter. Meech was arrested in a second Baxter sting in June 2015. He pleaded guilty Aug. 15, 2016, and was sentenced to two years of supervised probation, to attend "john school" and was fined $2,060.
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• Brent Michael Seivert, 43, Breezy Point. Seivert was arrested in the first sting in Baxter on May 20, 2015. Seivert pleaded guilty Aug. 8, 2016, and was sentenced to two years of unsupervised probation, to attend "john school" and was fined $2,085.
