Jul. 18—TRAVERSE CITY — Teaser videos by a TV personality who accompanied local law enforcement during an undercover sex sting operation were posted online and have been viewed nearly 30,000 times.
Chris Hansen, who previously hosted the reality television series, “To Catch a Predator,” visited Traverse City in June, filming the arrest of two men who later pleaded not guilty to charges they attempted to meet an underage person for sex at a local hotel.
Hanson now hosts a show, “Takedown,” on a streaming platform, TrueBlu+, and the short teaser videos posted on YouTube are clips from half-hour episodes available to paying subscribers.
Clayton Hall, 22, of Traverse City, and Scott Barrett, 61, of Charlevoix, were arraigned last month in 86th District Court on a variety of charges ranging from accosting children for immoral purposes to using a computer to commit a crime.
The multi-jurisdictional sting was conducted June 19 and 20 by local, state and federal law enforcement agencies, including the Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Office, Traverse City Police Department, Genesee County Sheriff’s Office, Homeland Security and the Michigan State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
Brad Jewett, 54, who represents part of Garfield and Blair townships on Grand Traverse County’s board, also was arrested in the sting.
Hansen has not posted a video of Jewett’s arrest and there is no indication that the case against Jewett involved an underage person.
Jewett, who has not been charged, allegedly engaged in solicitation of prostitution, officials have said.
Grand Traverse County Sheriff Mike Shea, who is briefly depicted in a video talking with Hansen during an organizational meeting, said his focus was on law enforcement and not videography.
“I was not confided in, nor was I involved in when and if his publications would be released,” Shea said.
In the video, Shea tells Hansen, “Ultimately, bad guy or gal off the street, safe, everybody goes home, and we get a good clean prosecution.”
Hansen in the videos shows drone footage of bayside hotels and describes Traverse City as the home of the “international” cherry festival, a quaint “vacation paradise” with a dark side.
“Don’t let the summer tourists and outdoor adventure-seekers fool you,” Hansen says in a voiceover. “Because the detectives posing as underage children have been inundated by men looking for sex with minors.”
Hall and Barrett both speak with Hansen immediately after their arrest, who describes his role as a person seeking to understand the men’s actions. It’s unclear from the footage when and if the men realize that Hansen is not a member of law enforcement.
“It’s sorta my job to kinda understand what you were thinking and how you got here tonight,” Hansen tells Barrett.
Barrett is represented by Traverse City Attorney Mattias Johnson, who did not return a request for comment.
Hall is represented by Jesse Williams, who said he couldn’t comment fully until viewing all of the video, but that he may have concerns about mixing entertainment with police work.
“It’s an extraordinary situation,” Williams said. “We have a documentary filmmaker, working in tandem with law enforcement, having the ability to force their way into an interview during an ongoing investigation.”
Rob Hentschel, chairman of the county board and a longtime colleague of Jewett’s, said he was unaware that videos of the other men arrested in the sting had been made public.
Hentschel said people who have been arrested must be viewed as innocent until proven guilty and everyone deserves to have their day in court without being pre-judged.
Court and YouTube records show that the videos were posted a few days after the men were arraigned.
Source Agencies
