Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office worker charged with child solicitation, prostitution

Formal charges have been filed against a Rochester man who is accused of engaging in sexual activity with a minor.

Rochester police say 44-year-old Mathew Adamson is in custody and was formally charged Friday with one count of engaging/hiring a child under the age of 14 for prostitution, child solicitation through electronic communication, and sexual conduct with a child through electronic communication.

Adamson is an employee for the Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office and was working as a detention deputy corporal in the jail, according to Capt. Tim Parkin. He adds Adamson is on administrative leave and that the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) and the Rochester Police Department are investigating Adamson.

Parkin didn’t provide any additional comment.

KAAL-TV reports Adamson will be prosecuted in Mower County.

During his initial appearance on Friday, Adamson’s bail was set at $100,000 with no conditions, and at $10,000 with conditions. Some of those conditions include no social media or internet use, as well as no possession of any firearms or dangerous weapons.

“Rochester Police Department takes internet crimes against children very seriously and is committed to finding offenders so they are held accountable,” said Rochester Police Chief Jim Franklin following Adamson’s arrest early Thursday evening.

According to police, the arrest happened at a retail shopping center after he had agreed to meet a minor at the location. Police add Adamson had been messaging with an undercover detective who had been posing as a 13-year-old girl.

A criminal complaint says the undercover detective received a message from Adamson on Nov. 1, 2023. The document says Adamson asked the age and gender of the undercover detective, who said they were a 13-year-old girl.

After that, despite Adamson knowing the person he was talking to be a minor, the document claims he said he would buy alcohol in exchange for various sexual acts. The conversation continued into the next day.

The complaint goes on to say Adamson started a conversation with a second undercover worker, a Minnesota BCA agent who posed as a 14-year-old girl. The document says Adamson sent a picture of both his work boots and his face to the undercover special agent, and in the photo, the background appeared to be a courtroom in Olmsted County.

Each of Adamson’s conversations involving the undercover workers were happening simultaneously, according to the complaint. It claims Adamson asked the undercover detective to meet him at a location in Rochester.

At that location, agents set up a decoy, and when Adamson arrived, the complaint says he called out to the decoy using the online persona name used by the undercover detective. That’s when police arrested Adamson.

The prostitution charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $40,000. The other two charges each carry a maximum fine of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

Adamson’s next court date is currently scheduled for Nov. 14.