MARQUETTE — Five men have been arrested by the Marquette County Sheriff’s Department and other local agencies for human trafficking and child prostitution in the Upper Peninsula, the Marquette County Prosecutor’s Office said.

The undercover operation led to the arrest and charges of Adam Duellman, 37, of Gwinn; Robert Wheeler, 20, of Kalamazoo; Joseph Ross, 37, of Marquette; Jeremy Kohler, 41, of Iron Mountain; and Christopher Ek, ​​44, of Wausau, Wis.

All five people were charged with the following offences:

– Child sexual abuse activity, a felony punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison and/or a $100,000 fine. Conviction of this offense requires the subject to register as a sex offender.

– Using a computer to commit child sexual abuse, a felony punishable by up to 20 years in prison and/or a $20,000 fine. This charge carries the possibility of a consecutive sentence at the discretion of the sentencing court.

– Acceptance of a child for immoral purposes, a felony with a maximum penalty of four years in prison and/or a $4,000 fine.

Conviction of this offense requires the subject to register as a sex offender.

– Using a computer to commit the charge of a child for immoral purposes, a felony with a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine. This charge carries the possibility of a consecutive sentence which is at the discretion of the sentencing court.

Local agencies that assisted in the operation are the Marquette Police Department, the Chocolay Township Police Department, the Forsyth Township Police Department, the Negaunee Police Department and the Ishpeming Police Department. TV personality and journalist Chris Hansen with the TruBlue network was also embedded in the operation.