Charges: Eden Prairie man raped 15-year-old boy
Michael Gillis, 34, is charged with 3rd-degree criminal sexual conduct with a minor following the alleged incident on March 2.
The victim's aunt reported to police that he left their Mounds View home at 2:30 p.m. on that day and had not returned. The boy's aunt said she found the victim's iPad, which revealed he had been talking to a male called "Nick Miller" through a site called "Sniffies."
Miller, later identified as Gillis, allegedly sent nude photographs to the victim. Police were able to learn that the victim was going to Gillis' home in Eden Prairie.
They found the victim around 6 p.m. on the streets near Gillis' home. The victim provided Discord chat history between himself and Gillis.
During the conversation, the boy confirmed to Gillis that he was still in high school, to which Gillis originally replied: "Hot af." Gillis also allegedly stated he had a "friends with benefits" with someone who is "younger" than the victim.
He then paid to send an Uber to the boy, who told police that when he got to the house Gillis "was being really creepy." Gillis allegedly took his clothes off, instructed the boy to do the same, and then sexually assaulted him.
After the assault, the victim waited till Gillis was asleep before running out of the house.
There is currently no attorney listed for Gillis. The Star Tribune reports that at the time of the alleged incident, Gillis was on electronic home monitoring as he awaits trial for a child solicitation charge in Florida.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Miami Herald
a day ago
- Miami Herald
Teacher preyed on 20 girls, ‘fantasized' about sex acts with MA student, feds say
A former Boston teacher would have sexual conversations with underage girls over Discord while he was at school and 'frequently fantasized about having sex' with one student who attended the school where he most recently taught, federal prosecutors said. John Magee Gavin, 35, of Brookline, messaged at least 20 minors from Canada, the U.K. and across the U.S. — including Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and West Virginia — and initiated sexual conversations, according to prosecutors. Some of the girls he is accused of preying on were as young as 12, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts said in a July 18 news release. Gavin was also found to have 147 files of child sexual abuse material on his iPhone, including 53 videos and 94 photos of girls and boys ages 5 to 17, according to prosecutors. Court documents say some of the images showed young girls 'being raped by an adult male.' Gavin taught science at the Josiah Quincy Upper School, a school for grades 6-12, prosecutors said. Before that job, he taught sixth grade at the Academy of the Pacific Rim Charter Public School in Hyde Park. He also worked as a paraprofessional for Brookline Public Schools, according to prosecutors. Gavin is facing one count of coercion and enticement of a minor; one count of receipt of child pornography; and one count of possession of child pornography, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. He was indicted July 10, when prosecutors said he was detained on related state charges. His defense attorneys did not immediately return McClatchy News' request for comment July 21. Gavin had his initial court appearance and arraignment on July 21, records show. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. The Discord chats In January, investigators linked Gavin to the Discord account that had been sending sexual messages to 20 different minors, according to prosecutors. The next month, state authorities arrested him on charges including enticing a child under 16 and possession of child pornography. The Discord chats typically began with Gavin and the minors exchanging their ages and Gavin revealing he was a teacher, prosecutors wrote in federal court filings. 'The messages within the chats are largely sexual in nature with Gavin often asking sexually charged questions to the MVTs ... and requests for CSAM,' a July 18 motion in support of Gavin's pretrial detention says. The chats also showed Gavin 'allegedly engaged in online masturbation sessions with the minors' and 'included conversations in which Gavin expressed his sexual interest in certain students at Josiah Quincy,' prosecutors said. Gavin's messages with one minor showed he was sexually interested in one female freshman student at the school in particular, according to prosecutors. On Feb. 7, Boston police executed a search warrant at Gavin's home and seized several pieces of his clothes, along with other items considered evidence, court documents say. Gavin lives about a 'quarter mile from a playground' in Brookline, which is about a 5-mile drive southwest from Boston. Gavin was seen wearing the clothing, including a sleeveless shirt he wore for a race, in several photos he sent to victims, according to prosecutors. Two photos were likely taken while he was at a school, prosecutors wrote in the motion for his detention. Detention ordered In the motion, prosecutors argued Gavin is a serious flight risk, a 'danger to the community' and that the amount of evidence against him is 'overwhelming.' 'Gavin worked with children on a daily basis and was able to conceal his sexual interest in his students from his employer and the community,' the filing says. 'Additionally, the nature of Gavin's offenses is particularly disturbing considering his career as an education professional.' The Boston Herald reports Boston Public Schools immediately put Gavin on administrative leave earlier this year. During Gavin's July 21 court appearance, a federal judge granted prosecutors' motion and ordered Gavin's detention, records show. If convicted on the charge of coercion and enticement of a minor, Gavin would face at least 10 years in prison and up to life in prison, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. He would face a minimum sentence of five years in prison and up to 20 years if convicted of receipt of child pornography, prosecutors said. If he is convicted of possessing child pornography, he would face a maximum sentence of 20 years. Concerns or suspicions about child sexual exploitation can be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline online or by calling 1-800-843-5678.
Newsweek
3 days ago
- Newsweek
Jewelry Store Owner Realizes Key Missing—Not Prepared for What CCTV Reveals
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. A mom who runs a jewelry store was baffled when the key to the cash register vanished—only to learn the truth when she checked CCTV. Jewelry designer Avigail Adam, 43, runs her own business, simply named Avigail Adam, with both an online website and physical stores in Pennsylvania. She is also a mom to two young kids: Maya, four, and two-year-old Ben. Running a family business means her kids sometimes have to wait in the store for her to be finished, and recently the babysitter brought her son and daughter to the store at 5pm, when Adam still had business to attend to. "I put on a kids' show for them on YouTube on the iPad while working, and I was sure they [were] watching it," Adam told Newsweek. The cash register, and a grab of the CCTV showing her son, Ben. The cash register, and a grab of the CCTV showing her son, Ben. TikTok @avigailadam1 Unbeknownst to her, however, the kids had decided to make their own fun—four-year-old Maya took the key out of the cash register, and toddler Ben "inserted it into the slot in the cashier." Adam had no idea this had happened, until she realized the key was missing and she didn't have access to the store's cash register. She shared the story in a viral video to her TikTok account, @avigailadam1, on July 7, where she explained: "POV [point of view] You own a jewelry store and suddenly notice that the only key for the cash drawer is missing." "So you check the surveillance and... we have some suspects." She then showed the CCTV footage, showing the kids leaning against the cash register while seemingly watching a show on the iPad, but instead pulling the key from the register. Once Maya has it freed, the "second suspect" then does what Adam describes as playing the "will it fit into a random crack" game. Having successfully pushed the key inside the cash register, with no clue how this will affect their mom's business, the duo go back to playing. But it wasn't that easy for Adam, as she told Newsweek: "For about a week we were not able to open the cash register and accept cash," and they were only able to access the cash desk again after ordering "another key from the company who makes the cash register keys." "We had one lady who got very upset with us because of that, but aside from that it wasn't too bad," she added. She playfully captioned the video "Their lawyer is claiming they've been framed, so I should probably add that they are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law." TikTok users had a big response to the clip, liked more than 230,000 times, as some suggested there may be a release button under the cash register, and others baffled at the fact there was only one key. Maya and Ben seen on CCTV playing with and losing the key. Maya and Ben seen on CCTV playing with and losing the key. TikTok @avigailadam1 Others wondered why the kids were left unsupervised, but as one commenter shared: "As a child with self-employed parents growing up, this is the least disruptive thing they could do. I've once lost the set of bathroom keys (this was at a restaurant.)" "My son did the same at our work. We found the key in a random shoe that was on display," another said, while one wrote simply: "Kids will be kids." Self-employed workers make up an important part of the United States workforce: according to a 2023 survey of more than 60,000 people, 7 percent of workers between the ages of 18 and 29 reported being self-employed or freelancers. The percentage grew to 8 percent between the ages of 30 and 64. 23 percent of people in the United States had started their own business by 2021, according to data published by IPSOS. Another commenter joked: "You can probably deduct it out of their wages," but one defended the kids: "I'm the lawyer and that's AI." As for the "suspects," Adam told Newsweek: "I showed my kids the video and explained they have to be careful, but they are still too young and adventurous, so I'm not sure they understood. "One day soon hopefully!" Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures you want to share? Send them to life@ with some extra details, and they could appear on our website.
Boston Globe
4 days ago
- Boston Globe
Ex-Boston Public Schools science teacher indicted on federal child porn charges
Gavin, a Brookline resident, is already in state custody. He was arraigned in February in Brookline District Court on multiple charges, including enticement of a minor to pose nude, the Globe previously Advertisement He pleaded not guilty to the state charges. He was ordered held on $50,000 bail. At the time, Boston Public Schools said Gavin had been placed on leave. He now faces new and similar charges in federal court. Gavin allegedly used the instant messaging app Discord to exchange nude photos with at least 20 girls, who were between 12 and 17 years old, who live in six states, as well as Great Britain and Canada, according to the US Attorney's office. 'It is alleged that, in these chats, Gavin disclosed that he was a teacher, engaged in sexual conversations and often asked the minors to send him pictures of themselves engaged in sexually explicit conduct – knowing that the children were underaged," prosecutors wrote in a statement released Friday. Advertisement 'The chats also allegedly included conversations in which Gavin expressed his sexual interest in certain students at Josiah Quincy,' prosecutors said. At the time of his arrest on state charges, Gavin was placed on leave from his job at the school. Prior to that, Gavin was a 6thgrade teacher at the Academy of the Pacific Rim Charter Public School in Hyde Park and was former classroom aide at the Roland Hayes School in Brookline, prosecutors said. Adam Sennott can be reached at
