A Gainesville man was arrested Friday morning on charges of procuring a 13-year-old girl for prostitution.
Shay Ward Thomsen, 36, of 3857 SW Third Ave., was charged with procuring a minor under the age of 18 for prostitution, a second-degree felony, according to a Gainesville Police report.
Sgt. David Blizzard reported he pulled Thomsen over at about 1:40 a.m. for an expired tag, and after approaching the car, reported Thomsen and the girl appearing nervous.
Thomsen told Blizzard he was driving the girl home.
Blizzard questioned the girl, and she said she needed to be home because of her 10 p.m. curfew.
The girl eventually told police she recently met Thomsen at church where he gave her the idea to begin selling her body for sex. She also stated Thomsen would drive her to locations to have sex with individuals he set up meetings with, according to the report.
The girl said she charged individuals $50 to $90 for sexual acts while Thomsen received 15 to 20 percent of the proceeds, according to the report.
Blizzard reported Thomsen consented to a search of his car and found a cell phone containing a nude picture of the girl, which the girl said she sent to Thomsen by mistake.
Police arrested Thomsen and contacted the girl’s father.
The father said his daughter knew Thomsen for about two weeks and has babysat for him several times, according to the report.
Thomsen could not be reached for comment.
Matt Marvin, 24, lives across the street from the Thomsen residence.
Marvin said he has seen Thomsen come home at late hours of the night. He also said the arrest was unusual since Thomsen has a wife and two children.
“It’s bizarre, and something you wouldn’t expect in a neighborhood full of families and students,” he said.
Thomsen is currently in jail with a bond set at $102,000.
