45-year-old enters guilty plea in Woodbury underage sex sting

Morgan Reddekopp KSTP

A 45-year-old man has pleaded guilty in connection with an underage sex sting in Woodbury that occurred in November of 2022.

Erich Christopher Hastreiter, of North St. Paul, was charged with prostitution by trying to hire a minor.

Nine people were arrested by East Metro Sex Trafficking Task Force in the undercover underage sex sting on Nov. 22, 2022. A 21-year-old man arrested in the sting had his case dismissed in May of 2024.

An undercover officer posted an advertisement using photos of an adult woman who appeared underage. The officer then posed as a 17-year-old and talked with people who responded to the ad.

According to court documents, each person who was charged acknowledged that the girl they believed they were setting up a visit for sex with was underage but still proceeded with the visit. They were arrested when they got to the location.

In addition to setting up the visit, Hastreiter messaged, “Can you come to the door so I know your real. Just have a gut feeling this is a trap. . . Woodbury is tough on this stuff and I just want to protect both of us.”

The others charged in the sting include:

Dominic David Rulli, 25, of White Bear Township.
Khalid Bushra Sharif, 33, of Minneapolis.
Pedro Herrera Santos, 52, of St. Paul.
Ellis Nii Teiko Annan, 30, of St. Paul.
Gia Phu Trinh, 40, of St. Paul.
Jhonny Javier Chacguasay, 31, of Minneapolis.
Avdinasir Qasim Ismail, 36, residence unknown.

Hastreiter is set to be sentenced Oct. 11.