MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A St. Paul man has been charged with two counts relating to sex trafficking at hotels in Woodbury and Oakdale. He was previously convicted of soliciting prostitution in Dakota County in 2010.

Calvin Caldwell Jr., 32, was charged in Washington County with one count of sex trafficking and one count of promoting prostitution.

According to the complaint, the East Metro Sex Trafficking Task Force (EMSTTF) found a commercial sex ad posted online in Woodbury on Nov. 12. The ad depicted a woman soliciting sexual services. The phone number tied to the ad was connected to 400 ads nationwide, including cities in Minnesota.

Oakdale Police Detective Ryan Stuart initiated an undercover text message conversation with the phone number in the ad and was given the location of a hotel in Woodbury.

The next day, Woodbury Police Detective Paul Kroshus heard a complaint that a female sex worker was in a hotel in Woodbury. She had been assaulted “by her pimp” and gone to an area hospital for her injuries. The complaint said her pimp goes by the names “Junior,” “Buddha,” or “Little Buddha.” The hotel name she gave was the same one connected to the ad Stuart had discovered a day earlier.

She said the assault happened on Nov. 12 before Caldwell had been arrested for driving while intoxicated. She was a passenger in the car and had visible injuries. When asked, she said there had been a physical assault earlier at Treasure Island Casino. However she refused to cooperate with an assault investigation. Kroshus learned she was the same woman in the online ad.

Kroshus then contacted the Woodbury hotel and confirmed Caldwell and the woman had rented a room. Hotel management added that they had received a complaint about a loud fight coming from the room.

On Nov. 14, Kroshus saw another commercial sex ad of the woman on a known commercial sex website. He then initiated an undercover text message with the same phone number Stuart had contacted two days before. Though he was given the location of the Woodbury hotel, he was asked if they could change the location because the hotel staff in Woodbury would ask guests for identification. Kroshus then suggested an apartment in Oakdale, Washington County.

They agreed to meet at 11:30 that morning. When the time came, members from the EMSTTF conducted surveillance at the hotel and saw Caldwell drive the woman to the location in Oakdale.

Caldwell allegedly dropped her off at the apartment building. Afterwards, police initiated a traffic stop and arrested him. He claimed to be there to pick up marijuana and denied being involved with prostitution.

When interviewed, the woman admitted she was a commercial sex worker and claimed she was in a romantic relationship with Caldwell. She confirmed he knew of the prostitution but did not force her to do it. She was later released.

Members of the EMSTTF found social media pages belonging to Caldwell and the woman. Caldwell’s posts are associated with active gang involvement in St. Paul. He also posted sex ads of the woman while traveling in California, Illinois, and Nevada this year. It’s believed the woman was trafficked in several states by Caldwell.

Caldwell has several felony convictions, including a prior qualified human trafficking offense. In 2010, he was arrested in a hotel in Dakota County. According to the complaint, officials found two women inside a hotel room. When interviewed, one of the women said Caldwell took pictures of her, posted them online, and rented the hotel room since she was under 21.

Because of his criminal history, high bail has been requested for Caldwell. If convicted, he could face a maximum sentence of 15 years and $30,000 for each charge.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The Minnesota Department of Corrections is investigating two separate stabbing incidents that happened at the Oak Park Heights Correctional Facility Monday afternoon.

Few details were immediately available, but the department reports the first stabbing happened a little after 1 p.m. One inmate was reportedly stabbed by two other inmates. The victim was taken to the hospital, though the inmate’s condition was not immediately reported.

The second stabbing happened shortly after the first, the department reported, but in another part of the building. In that incident one inmate stabbed another. That victim’s condition was also not immediately reported.

Both stabbings are still under investigation.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A businessman accused of exploiting his construction workers has pleaded guilty as his trial was about to start in Minneapolis.

Forty-seven-year-old Ricardo Ernesto Batres pleaded guilty Monday in Hennepin County to labor trafficking and insurance fraud.

Prosecutors alleged Batres denied the employees health coverage and workers’ compensation and forced them to live in overcrowded housing with no hot water.

A criminal complaint says the construction workers did not have authorization to be in the U.S. and when they complained about the conditions, Batres reported them to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which deported some of them.

Minnesota Public Radio News reports under the plea deal, prosecutors are recommending a sentence of nine months in the workhouse with the possibility of early release.

Batres’ company, American Contractors and Associates, provided construction work throughout Hennepin County and the region.

(© Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A mother and daughter are home, together, after a terrifying morning.

A man stole their car with the 4-year-old in the back seat.

“I literally felt like I was watching a horror movie, but I was living it,” said Jannah Almalki.

Jannah never imagined putting air in a tire, would lead to every parent’s worst nightmare. Early Monday morning she was filling up the rear passenger tire of her car when she noticed the weight shift.

“I felt something heavy weigh down my car and then my car door slammed. And I was thinking, no way that was my daughter,” said Jannah. “At that point, I realized my car is getting stolen.”

As the thief put the car in reverse, Jannah frantically tried to open the doors but they were locked.

“At that point, the car drove off and I just started screaming at the top of my lungs. My daughter! Somebody help me! My baby!”

RELATED: Robbinsdale Police Investigate Car Burglary With 4-Year-Old Child Inside

She and other witnesses began to run after the vehicle as the thief drove into a nearby grocery store parking lot. And then he did something unexpected.

“He stopped at the Hy-Vee grocery store and took her out of the car seat and put her outside of the car,” said Jannah. “I ran up to my daughter and squeezed her and collapsed to the floor, crying.”

Noora was also in tears but relieved.

And it turns out she had some choice words for the thief when they were in the car together.

“That’s my mom’s car. Give her her car back,” said Noora, as she recalled what she said to the thief.

“I didn’t care about my car. Take my car, take whatever you want. But she is irreplaceable. I’m just happy that she’s okay and she’s still here,” said Jannah.

Police found Jannah’s car in Golden Valley and have not made an arrest as of yet.

The car was fine, but the thief did make off with her laptop, wallet and cell phone.

Jannah said next time, no matter how cold it is, she will turn off her car and lock it while she puts air in her tires.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — For the second time this month, a rash of garage burglaries has hit a neighborhood in the city’s southwest side.

Sunday night into Monday, Minneapolis police said there were seven garage burglaries in the Uptown area, specifically the 3200 and 3300 blocks of James and Knox Avenues South.

More than a week earlier, eight garages were hit in the alley connecting James and Knox Avenues South between 52nd and 57th Streets. Police said it’s likely the crimes are connected.

Mitchell Heck didn’t realize his Monday was going to include some handiwork, but a thief in the night left him no choice after rummaging through his garage and car.

“Your car is such a personal space. When you kind of get that violated by somebody that you don’t even know who they are, it’s a little strange,” he said.

That feeling was likely shared by several neighbors, six in particular also reported garage burglaries in the Uptown area. Police said the thief or thieves entered the garages through unlocked services doors or by breaking in.

“Fortunately for me, there was no actual damage. Unfortunately for some of the other houses, they were actually kicked in,” he said.

Earlier this month, a similar burst of burglaries hit a five-block stretch of James and Knox Avenues South. A car with the keys left inside was stolen at one home. Another victim had a snow blower taken.

Both neighborhoods where the crimes occurred are in the city’s 5th Precinct, which covers most of Southwest Minneapolis.

The police department’s Data Dashboard shows there have been 768 burglaries reported in the 5th Precinct since the beginning of the year. That’s a 29% increase from the same time period 2018.

But the numbers are still lower than 2017 when more than 821 burglaries were reported during the same time period.

“It doesn’t feel like it’s gonna be a concern overall. The neighborhood still feels safe,” said Heck.

Police said they’ve increased patrols in both neighborhoods, while continuing to remind people to install lighting, security systems, and cameras.

Heck focused on strengthening his door locks by using longer screws and a larger strike plate. “Ain’t nobody kicking this (door) open,” he said.

Burglaries across Minneapolis are up about 8% compared to this time last year. However, the total is lower compared to the same time period in 2017.

St. Paul’s reported burglaries are up 8% compared to 2018.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A 66-year-old man is being held at the Barron County Jail, and charges are expected later this week, for what would be the man’s 15th DWI.

The Barron County Sheriff’s Office arrested the Rice Lake man on suspicion of driving while intoxicated on Monday night.

According to law enforcement, he was involved in a single vehicle crash at the intersection of Highway 25 and Highway A, south of Barron, Wis.

WCCO does not name suspects until they have been formally charged with a crime.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — A Kentucky man and his two adult daughters are charged with killing a Minnesota man on Valentine’s Day. The victim was reportedly in a relationship with one of the daughters, who then appears to have married her father about a month after the murder.

The Bluefield Daily Telegraph of West Virginia reports that 55-year-old Larry McClure and his daughters are each facing one count of first-degree murder in the death of 38-year-old John McGuire, of Owatonna.

In a letter to court officials earlier this month, McClure, of Pendleton, Kentucky, confessed to the killing, explaining the roles he and his daughters, Amanda McClure and Anna Choudary, played in the crime.

According to investigators, the killing happened on Feb. 14 at a home in Skygusty, West Virginia. McGuire was hit in the head with a wine bottle, tied up, injected with methamphetamine, and strangled, the newspaper reports. Police found McGuire’s body on the property.

Larry McClure told investigators that his daughter, Amanda McClure, was the ringleader of the murder, the newspaper reports. She was in a relationship with McGuire and lived in Minnesota. Larry McClure claimed not to know his daughter’s motive.

A few weeks after the killing, Larry and Amanda McClure crossed state lines and got married in Virginia.

A marriage license reportedly obtained by the Daily Telegraph showed that the two were wed on March 11, with the name of another man listed as being Amanda McClure’s father. In Virginia, marriage between father and daughter is illegal and punishable by up to six months in jail.

Larry McClure told officials where to find McGuire’s body in September, after he was arrested on a registry offence. He is a registered sex offender, the newspaper reports.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Illinois law enforcement have identified 64-year-old Anatoliy Ermak, who once lived in Edina, as a suspect in a double homicide that took place on Sunday evening.

A man and woman were found lying on the “bloody ground” outside a vehicle in Buffalo Grove, Ill. at about 8 p.m. First responders were unable to save them.

The names of the victims won’t be released until after their families have been alerted.

Buffalo Grove police officers are searching for Ermak in connection to the incident, warning that he should be considered armed and dangerous.

Authorities say Ermak may be driving a white Nissan Versa hatchback, with a Florida license plate that reads “KCF-K75.” He was last seen wearing a “dark jacket and dark baseball-style hat.”

The crime is believed to be targeted and the agency does not believe there is an active threat to the community.

If you have any information about his whereabouts, you are asked to contact the police at (847) 459-2560, or anonymously at (847) 662-2222.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — The Wadena County Sheriff’s Office says a horse was killed last Wednesday, northwest of Nimrod on 209th Avenue — there are no suspects in the investigation at this time.

A sheriff deputy located a “smaller Colt horse” lying on its side with a bullet hole in its abdomen midday on Wednesday.

Authorities say the property owner had returned home to find the horse frozen and lying on the ground with a bullet hole. It had not been checked on for three days.

Law enforcement searched in the area for hunters and attempted to make contact with neighbors. The investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Wadena County Sheriff’s Office.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Eden Prairie police say three separate armed robbery incidents reported to have occurred on Anderson Lakes Parkway did not actually occur. Now, a woman faces charges accusing her of helping the “victims” of the robberies, who were undocumented immigrants, file false police reports in order to get visas.

On Tuesday, Eden Prairie Police Chief Greg Weber made the announcement, saying the robberies, two of which were reported in August and another reported in October 2015, did not occur and that an arrest has been made in the case.

“It is important to me to keep residents informed about crime in our City, because an informed community is safer and more trusting. For that reason, we have aimed to maintain a degree of transparency about these cases, without jeopardizing the investigations,” Weber said.

Police Chief Greg Weber: Alleged Robberies on Anderson Lakes Parkway Did Not Occur https://t.co/DIRsckiejK

— Eden Prairie PD (@EdenPrairiePD) November 19, 2019

Criminal charges were filed Friday. According to the criminal complaint, 36-year-old Yuridia Hernandez Linares of Eden Prairie faces one felony count of theft-by swindle in connection to the incidents.

She’s accused of taking thousands of dollars from four individuals, telling them that she knew how they could get “papers” by faking an assault. She allegedly told them she had a connection inside the police department and that for $2,000, she could get them U visas. She even allegedly cut them with a box cutter, or sharp object, to make the false armed robberies appear real.

According to the complaint, Linares helped two individuals report a stabbing during a robbery on Aug. 20 and two other individuals report a similar stabbing/robbery incident on Aug. 30.

Additionally, police said all robbery suspects were armed with knives and described similarly. Police also noted that all the victims were undocumented Latinos, who all suffered only one injury each. The injuries were all clean superficial cuts about the same length.

During the investigation, police identified Linares as an associate of the individuals in the Aug. 20 incident, and noted that Linares reported a similar incident in October 2015. Back then, Linares and her friend reported that their purses were stolen and that they had been cut with knives. In March 2016, Eden Prairie police received a letter requesting a U visa for Linares, which the police chief signed. A U visa can be issued to cooperating crime victims, who are undocumented.

Related: Victims of Criminal Activity: U Nonimmigrant Status

The four individuals who worked with Linares said they paid her $5,000 based on her saying that she could get them a U visa. They said they were afraid of both immigration and Linares, who allegedly told them that if they told anyone, they would go to jail.

“I commend the Eden Prairie Police officers, investigators and all who assisted with these cases, for their hard work and diligence. I also want to thank the Eden Prairie community for your trust and patience as we worked through this complicated and sensitive investigation,” Weber said.

Linares is in custody. If convicted, she could face up to 10 years in prison and/or a $20,000 fine.

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — Bloomington police assisted Minneapolis Police Tuesday afternoon in executing a warrant at a home on the 1500 block of East 87th Street. Soon after, the Hennepin County Crime Lab was called to process the scene.

Friends tell WCCO this is the same home 29-year-old William Albrecht was last seen getting into a cab outside of last week. They have been searching for him non-stop for the last five days.

William Albrecht (credit: CBS)

“The last time that anyone saw him was him leaving from the house behind us. He was getting into a cab. He was supposed to be returning home and he never showed up at home,” said friend Catrinaa Ingles. “We love Will so much and we are all very, very concerned about him. All we want is for him to come home and for him to be found. We love him so much. He is such a great person. He’s got two kids that we are concerned about and his family.”

Albrecht is 5-feet-10-inches tall and weighs 180 pounds. He has brown hair, brown eyes and a full beard and mustache. He was last seen wearing a white sweater, blue shirt, jeans and a gold chain.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to call Minneapolis Police.

CROKSTON, Minn. (AP) — A northwestern Minnesota woman has been sentenced to spend another three years behind bars for running over and killing her boyfriend while drunk.

Forty-seven-year-old Beth Windus earlier pleaded guilty to criminal vehicular homicide in the August death of 51-year-old Jonathon Sundquist outside their home in Gonvick.

The criminal complaint says when the couple returned home from a bar, Windus told Sundquist to get out of the pickup and backed over him. Windus was driving with a revoked license at the time and was on probation for drunken driving.

The Star Tribune reports that with credit for time served in jail, Windus will spend three years in prison and the balance of the 4-year, 9-month sentence on supervised release.

(© Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – State health officials say a caregiver at a Twin Cities memory care facility is to blame in connection to a fall over the summer that led to a resident’s death.

In a report released this week, the Minnesota Department of Health says that neglect was substantiated at Emerald Crest in Minnetonka.

Investigators say a caregiver there was responsible for maltreatment on July 11 when she fell asleep on her shift and the resident in her care fell and broke her femur. The resident, who had Alzheimer’s and a history of getting up in the night, died 19 days later, from complications from the fracture.

A statement from Augustana Care, which runs Emerald Crest and other memory care facilities, says that the caregiver was fired.

“This tragedy affected everyone at Emerald Crest and we want to express our deepest sorrow that it happened at all,” the statement said. “Our primary concern is for the resident’s family and for the residents we serve. Their safety and wellbeing is our highest priority.”

The company says that since the incident it’s reviewed its safety policies and procedures and retrained staff members.

BRAINERD, Minn. (AP/WCCO) — Sheriff’s officials in central Minnesota are investigating the death of an 9-month-old boy at a home day care.

On Nov. 12, emergency responders found the baby boy unresponsive after they were called to the day care located on 6500 block of Wetherbee Road in Brainerd. The infant died a short time later at Essentia Health-St. Joseph’s Medical Center.

On Wednesday, the infant victim was identified as 9-month-old Zander Miller of Brainerd.

State regulators have temporarily suspended the license of the day care operator while the Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office and Ramsey County Medical Examiner investigate.

The Star Tribune reports the Minnesota Department of Human Services’ licensing order says there was an alleged “incident involving a serious injury to a child,” though it contained no specifics. The child was not named.

(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) — St. Cloud Police are investigating after a former employee allegedly stole more than $100,000 from the student activities account at Tech High School.

Police say the school district discovered “significant discrepancies” when conducting a recent fiscal year-end review of their accounts.

An independent audit was executed, and police say that’s when they found credible evidence that a former employee had taken the money over the course of the last two years.

Police are now pursuing felony-level theft charges. The identity of the former employee was not released.

The school district was insured for theft, but the insurance deductible is $2,500.

Tech High School recently suspended 19 students after a September riot.