The wife of a Minnesota senator arrested for allegedly soliciting a minor for prostitution has filed for divorce as he languishes behind bars.
Justin Eichorn, 40, was arrested in his car last week after he allegedly arranged to meet up with who he thought was a 17-year-old girl for sex.
Eichron’s wife Brittany filed a petition for dissolution of marriage in Itasca County Court on Monday following the devastating allegations.
A court had initially granted him conditional release to a halfway house but that was revoked on Monday after prosecutors leveled new claims against the disgraced politician.
They allege he arranged with a Grand Rapids woman to retrieve a computer and other items from the St. Paul apartment where he lived alone during legislative sessions before the FBI could search the unit.
Prosecutors also argued that Eichorn should remain jailed because the text messages he had exchanged with an undercover officer posing as a 17-year-old girl before his arrest demonstrated his ‘clear familiarity with soliciting commercial sex from minors.’
‘Eichorn’s messages and conduct reveal an experienced operator,’ prosecutors wrote in their application to keep him detained.
‘His pretrial release brings with it a real risk that he would attempt to victimize other minors in the community.’
He is from Grand Rapids and shares four children with his wife Brittany (pictured)
Eichorn is a married father-of-four (pictured during a campaign video with his family). His wife, Brittany, has now filed for divorce
He will now remain behind bars until at least Wednesday, when he is scheduled to appear again before a judge in a pre-trial hearing.
Bloomington Police said a detective arranged to meet with the married father-of-four near the 8300 block of Normandale Boulevard.
He was observed arriving in his pickup truck – before being arrested without incident outside of his vehicle by uniformed officers.
After his arrest, he was warned that his calls from jail were not private and would be recorded.
Still, he and the unnamed woman allegedly organized for her to travel to his unit in an effort to remove material that may have been of interest to authorities.
‘Eichorn’s conduct evidences a willingness to conceal material facts from the Court and to do so at the expense of public safety,’ prosecutors said.
They said ‘even more concerning … is the possibility that Eichorn lied’ in order to get his apartment cleared out before law enforcement could get there.
By the time the woman got to the apartment Friday morning, FBI agents had already secured it with a warrant to search for evidence in the case against Eichorn.
Justin Eichron, 40, was caught by Bloomington Police Department detectives Monday after allegedly arranging to meet up with a teenage girl for sex
During their search, agents found a bag on the counter containing $1,000 in cash; a handgun and ammunition; a laptop computer; an SD memory card; an iPhone and several of Eichorn’s Senate business cards, prosecutors said. They said the iPhone appeared to have been reset to its factory settings, which can erase all content on the device.
One of the conditions for Eichorn’s release to a halfway house was that he not possess firearms. Prosecutors allege he deliberately lied when he told a pretrial services officer after his first court appearance last Thursday that he had no firearms in his apartment.
‘As a 40-year-old man, if you come to the Orange Jumpsuit District looking to have sex with someone’s child, you can expect that we are going to lock you up,’ Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges said at the time of his arrest.
The lawmaker from Grand Rapids resigned after he was charged with attempted coercion and enticement of a minor to engage in prostitution, a felony that carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years.
Eichron is a Republican State Senator who was first elected in 2016, according to his senate biography.
He had been facing immense pressure both from within his party and the Democrats to resign after his arrest.
‘We are shocked by these reports, and this alleged conduct demands an immediate resignation. Justin has a difficult road ahead, and he needs to focus on his family,’ the Minnesota Senate Republican Caucus said.
State House Republican leadership also called on Eichron to resign after the news of his arrest broke.
The Minnesota Senate Republican Caucus swiftly condemned his arrest and called for Eichron to resign
Eichron is a Republican State Senator who was first elected in 201
‘Given the seriousness of the charges, Senator Eichorn should resign. While he is entitled to due process, we must hold legislators to a higher standard,’ they said.
Minnesota Democrats also condemned his actions and called him a danger to the public.
‘No one who solicits children belongs anywhere near public office or the State Capitol,’ said Minnesota DFL executive director Heidi Kraus Kaplan.
‘The facts presented by [police] make it clear that Senator Eichorn is an immediate danger to the public and must resign immediately.’
‘The felony allegation against Senator Eichorn is deeply disturbing, and raises serious questions that will need to be answered by the court, as well as his caucus and constituents,’ read a statement from Senate Majority Leader Erin Murphy.
