ROCHESTER, MINNESOTA – A Lake Mills man arrested in Rochester, Minnesota after he was caught in an attempt to set up a prostitution deal has been convicted of a felony.
On February 22, 2016, Michael Alan Gardner, age 40 of Lake Mills, was arrested and taken to the Olmsted county jail in Rochester, accused of felony “Induce Prostitution Less Than 16” and Possession of Crack Cocaine. Gardner had been arrested and booked into the jail that day 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. She was declared a victim of sex trafficking and was not arrested.
As a result of this arrest, Minnesota court records show that Gardner was convicted of a felony, promoting prostitution of an individual. He was also convicted of fifth-degree drug possession. He was put on probation for 2 years and ordered to serve 16 days in jail. He must also complete 75 hours of community service or pay a $750.00 fine.
Gardner was already facing plenty of trouble back here in Iowa at the time of this crime. Felony drug charges for illegal drugs (meth, prescription drugs, marijuana) by Lake Mills police and Winnebago county sheriff’s office resulted in a guilty plea in March and sentencing in June. He was given a suspended 5-year prison sentence, 3 years of probation, a suspended fine, ordered to submit a DNA sample and pay $435.00 in court fees.
