Investigators with the Utah Attorney General’s Office arrested Mitchell McKee earlier this month, March 20, for alleged sexual crimes involving a minor.
He has now been charged with 10 felony counts for human trafficking of a child, forcible sodomy, forcible sexual abuse, sexual exploitation of a minor, enticement of a minor, and dealing in material harmful to a minor.
McKee, who works in the Wasatch County Sheriff’s Office as an administrative services director, has been suspended from his role. He was also working as a sex therapist in Provo at the time of his arrest.
Charging documents state Heber police began looking into the case following a traffic stop in early January, when they spoke with a 15-year-old boy who they later learned had been meeting McKee for sex.
After interviewing the teenager about multiple incidents when the two had met, a detective from the Heber City Police Department discovered McKee’s identity. Because the department’s investigations division shares a location with the sheriff’s investigative team, at that point the detective transferred the case to the Utah Attorney General’s Office.
A special agent from the attorney general continued the investigation. Along with agents from the Internet Crimes Against Children program, they found sexually explicit messages and images on McKee’s phone, as well as images on a hard drive in his garage.
The case has been transferred to the Fourth District Court in Provo due to McKee’s role in Wasatch County.
The attorney general’s office requested McKee be arrested with a no bail warrant, arguing that, to “ensure the safety of the community,” he must be prevented from accessing the Internet or being around any minors.
Neither the attorney general’s office nor the sheriff's office immediately provided additional comment.
