ROCHESTER, MINNESOTA – A Lake Mills man is behind bars in Rochester, Minnesota after he was caught in an attempt to set up a prostitution deal, with a little crack in his possession.
Michael Alan Gardner, age 40, is now in the Olmsted county jail in Rochester, accused of felony “Induce Prostitution Less Than 16” and Possession of Crack Cocaine. He is awaiting an arraignment hearing.
KTTC TV in Rochester reported that police told them Gardner had been arrested and booked into the jail on February 22 after police responded to a Backpages.com ad for prostitution. Police had gone to a hotel to respond to the ad, and there, Gardner was arrested. With him was a 22-year-old woman, KTTC reported. She was a victim of sex trafficking and was not arrested.
Gardner is already facing plenty of trouble back here in Iowa. Court records show recent felony drug charges for illegal drugs (meth, prescription drugs, marijuana) by Lake Mills police and Winnebago county sheriff’s office. He is supposed to be at a plea hearing with his public defender Susan Flander on multiple charges on April 1 in Winnebago county district court.
