Bloomington police: Eichorn among 14 men arrested as part of sex solicitation sting

Former Minnesota Sen. Justin Eichorn, who resigned Thursday amid allegations he tried to solicit a 17-year-old girl for prostitution, was among more than a dozen men arrested as part of the same sting.

The Bloomington Police Department on Friday said it arrested 14 men over the past several days through an undercover operation to ensnare “Johns” who were attempting to hire underage girls for sex. Those arrests have already resulted in criminal charges for at least nine of the suspects who were caught, a 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS review of court records found.

According to court documents, Bloomington police set up online ads on websites known to offer prostitution services on March 12. When people responded to these ads, an undercover officer communicated that she lied about her age in the posting and was actually 17.

Several criminal complaints detail text conversations between suspects and the undercover officer, which often revealed the defendants were familiar with the terminology surrounding rates and specific services, all while having full belief the person on the other end was a minor.

Eichorn — who is charged in federal court with coercion and enticement of a minor for prostitution — was one of these defendants.

“I am 17 … like I said don’t want any drama but wanna be upfront cause one guy got hella mad at me,” the undercover officer told Eichorn.

“Why was he so mad? I think age of consent is 17 when do ya turn 18?” he responded.

Other texts showed Eichorn knew terms like “Qv” and “hhr,” shorthand for “quick visit” and “half-hour” rates.

Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges is expected to share more about his department’s work on this operation during a news conference Monday morning at 9:30 a.m.