NO. 10: SEX OFFENDER NOTIFICATIONS
Offenders on the move to county cause a stir
Several Level 3 predatory offenders made news in 2009 when it was announced they were moving into Crow Wing County.
The first, Harold Clayton Lacy, was released from prison in June and moved to downtown Brainerd. He had served several prison terms since 2000 for crimes of assault, terroristic threats and harassment against women he knew, including holding them against their will.
Lacy was arrested July 15 for violating the conditions of his release from prison after he exhibited assaultive and violent behavior. By the end of July, he was back in prison.
In October, the public was informed that a Level 3 predatory offender, Eugene Allen Wgeishofski, had been living for almost a year with relatives in Ironton. Following public outcry at the community notification meeting, it was determined that Wgeishofski had properly contacted authorities when he moved to Crow Wing County, but his case information was never entered into the county's system. The sheriff's department took steps to remedy the problem.
Concerned citizens were informed when Harold Clayton Lacy, a Level 3 predatory offenders, was released from prison in June and had moved to downtown Brainerd. But by the end of July, he was back in prison. Dispatch file photo
In 1980, Wgeishofski was convicted in Washington for third-degree rape of a 15-year-old girl. In 1981, Wgeishofski broke into a residence in Washington and sexually assaulted a 24-year-old woman. In 1989, it was alleged he had sexual misconduct with a 16-year-old girl, including solicitation for sex.
Wgeishofski continues to live in Ironton and is one of two Level 3 predatory offenders currently living in Crow Wing County. The other, Matthew Sean Salinas, has been living in Trommald since March 2008.
On Dec. 15, it was announced that Level 3 predatory offender Brooks D. Fisher intended to rent a house on Soder Road near North Long Lake. Fisher has been in prison since 1992 on convictions in Stearns County for first-degree criminal sexual conduct and aggravated robbery. However, Fisher never moved to Crow Wing County after the owner of the house objected to Fisher living there.
A week later, the Crow Wing County Sheriff's Department announced a community notification meeting was scheduled regarding Christopher Eugene Wheeler, who plans to move to a residence near County Road 8 and Cooley Drive in Roosevelt Township in rural Brainerd. According to the sheriff's office, Wheeler has a history of sexual conduct with juvenile female victims between the ages of 10-15. The offender was known to his victims.
MATT ERICKSON may be reached at matt. erickson@brainerddispatch.com or 855-5857.