Mesquite detective accused of sexually abusing Utah teen

MESQUITE — A veteran Mesquite police detective has a been arrested on charges of sexually abusing a southern Utah teen he met on a social networking app geared toward gay and bisexual men.

Gary Erickson was arrested Sept. 12 in Las Vegas. He’s awaiting extradition to St. George, Utah, on one count of sexual abuse of a minor, one count of dealing in material harmful to a minor and three counts of sexual exploitation.

Citing court records, The St. George Spectrum reports he arranged a sexual encounter with the 15-year-old boy in an aquatic center locker room in St. George in August.

The police department said in a statement Wednesday the 50-year-old Erickson had been fired, after initially being placed on adminstrative leave, after an internal affairs investigation. He had worked there since 1999.

The department said in the statement that internal investigations are confidential by law, and that the department cannot answer any questions or provide further comment about Erickson.

It’s not clear if he has a lawyer or will be appointed one.

Review-Journal staff writer Katelyn Newberg contributed to this report.