Wadena Man Charged in Federal Court with Attempting to Sexually Exploit a Minor

A registered sex offender from Wadena has been charged in federal court with attempting to sexually exploit a minor and persuade that minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says a grand jury indicted 53-year-old Matthew W. Tolkinen on the charges on November 19th.

According to court documents, Tolkinen was indicted after engaging in an online conversation with an undercover law enforcement officer from Wisconsin who was posing as a 12-year-old girl. Tolkinen is accused of repeatedly describing his desire to have sex with the child, whom he believed was in school, while describing his plan in graphic detail.

Tolkinen was arrested in Minnesota on November 20th. He appeared in federal court in Wisconsin on December 5th and was ordered detained.

A jury trial is scheduled to begin on February 10th. If convicted of the charges, Tolkinen faces a mandatory minimum of 25 years in federal prison.