Rochester man found guilty following child sex sting in Florida

Rochester, Minn. (KROC-AM News) – A Rochester man who was arrested during an undercover child sex solicitation operation has been sentenced.

Kyle Jo Werner, 53 reached a plea deal in March that required him to admit to a charge of electronic communication relating to or describing sexual conduct with a child in exchange for dismissal of four other charges.

Werner was indicted on five counts last summer following a police investigation by Florida authorities.

Charges: Rochester man sent obscene video of himself to Florida officer posing as an underage girl

The criminal complaint says a Coral Springs Police Department detective posed as a 13-year-old girl online and contacted a Rochester police investigator after chatting with a Rochester man for several days.

At one point, the Rochester man sent a video to the underage girl, who was actually an undercover agent, showing him performing a lewd act, the court document states.

He also allegedly described the sexual acts he wanted to perform on the young girl.

A Rochester police investigator then verified Werner's identity and found a tip from 2018 accusing Werner of using the same username to chat with undercover officers posing as 14-year-old girls .

An anonymous tipster also claimed that Werner was in possession of child sexual abuse material at his home in 2023.

Rochester man avoids prison for soliciting child sex

Werner was sentenced Monday to five years of probation and 30 days in jail with work release.

He was given credit for two days in custody and ordered to begin his jail stay on July 9.

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