Robert Jay Miller, 42, of Negaunee; Ameire Rackem Stevens, 48, of Skandia; Alan Brian Schwalbach, 64, of Vulcan; Keith David Johnson, 50, of Au Train; and Chad Michael Anderson, 32, of Gwinn were arrested after a joint sting operation that was conducted March 18 by multiple law enforcement agencies “to identify and arrest suspected consumers of child sex crimes,” officials said.

Each suspect has been charged by the Marquette County Prosecutor’s Office with the following offenses:

— Child sexually abusive activity, a felony which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and/or a fine of $100,000, and also requires the suspect to register as a sex offender under the Michigan Sex Offender Registration Act;

— Use of a computer to commit child sexual abusive activity, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 20 years and/or a fine of $20,000, along with the possibility of a consecutive sentence within the discretion of the court;

Alan Schwalbach

— Accosting a child for immoral purposes, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of four years in prison and/or a fine of $4,000 and also requires the suspect to register as a sex offender; and

— Use of a computer to commit accosting a child for immoral purposes, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and/or a fine of $5,000, along with the possibility of a consecutive sentence.

Officials with the prosecutor’s office emphasized that the charges are currently only allegations, and the suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

The joint sting operation was carried out by members of Marquette County law enforcement agencies in collaboration with the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office in the Lower Peninsula. Upper Peninsula agencies involved in the operation included the Marquette County Sheriff’s Office, the Marquette Police Department, the Michigan State Police and the Upper Peninsula Substance Enforcement Team and the Iron River Police Department. The Genesee Human Oppression Strike Team, GHOST, also aided in the operation.

An additional suspect was arrested in a separate Menominee County operation on Friday, officials said.

KEITH JOHNSON

Jeremy Bertrand, 33, was charged with one count of child sexual abusive activity, one count of use of a computer to commit a felony and one count of accosting a child for immoral purposes, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Bertrand is due for a probable cause conference on April 5 in Menominee County, according to the Marquette County Prosecutor’s Office.

Miller, Schwalbach, Johnson and Anderson are all due in 96th District Court on April 14 for probable cause conferences, while Stevens is due in court Monday for arraignment via Zoom, online court records show.

Miller, Stevens, Schwalbach, Johnson, Anderson and Bertrand have all posted bond, according to the Marquette County Prosecutor’s Office.

Bond for Miller, Stevens and Schwalbach was set at 10% of $10,000 for each of the four charges the men faced, officials said. Johnson and Anderson posted bond at 10% of $2,000 for each of the four charges the two men faced.

CHAD ANDERSON

Bertrand is out on a $75,000 cash surety bond, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Marquette County Prosecutor Matt Wiese said at Wednesday’s news conference that no children were harmed before the subjects were arrested.

“The thing I think about most on this is the fact that we didn’t have any named child victims here,” he said. “Over the years, as you know I’ve handled many child sexual abuse cases, and it’s very tragic as you’re dealing with children that have already been molested.

“Here, because of the success of the sting operation, we were able to identify people that wanted to prey on children, and they were arrested without any children being harmed in this particular operation. I think it’s proactive and it helps protect other children and sends a message to anyone who might want to participate in this activity that law enforcement will be watching.”

Stephanie Krieger, president of the Upper Peninsula Human Trafficking Task Force, was also on hand to share comments, calling the operation a great success for all 15 U.P. counties.

Ameire Stevens

“It is a fantastic thing here in the U.P. that we can all work together,” she said. “We have 15 counties to look after, and specifically I want to thank our community and our prosecutor, (Michigan State Police) Eighth District Headquarters, the (Marquette) County Sheriff’s Office, Marquette PD and Iron River PD as well. We will win this fight together. No one agency can do that, and it takes a lot of great skill and specific knowledge,” Krieger said.

For more information on the Upper Peninsula Human Trafficking Task Force, go to www.upht123.org.

Those who suspect a case of human trafficking can report it by calling 1-866-347-2423, dialing 911 or reporting it to local authorities immediately. For the National Human Trafficking Hotline, dial 1-888-373-7888 or text HELP to 233733.

Ryan Spitza can be reached at 906-228-2500, ext. 248. His email address is rspitza@miningjournal.net.