Former Menominee County sheriff’s deputy gets more prison time

MENOMINEE, Mich. (WLUC) – A former Menominee County sheriff’s deputy was sentenced to additional prison time Friday.

Brian Helfert is already a convicted sex offender. Last December, a jury found Helfert guilty of second-degree sexual assault with a weapon. He was sentenced in March to a minimum of nine and a maximum of 15 years in prison. Friday’s ruling involved a different case and a different child.

During sentencing, 41st District Court Judge Christopher Ninomiya said Helfert was a “monster” who deserved the maximum sentence allowed by law.

“In this case, the Michigan Department of Corrections court can impose a maximum sentence of 40 to 60 months,” Ninomiya said.

The sentence was the result of an agreement reached in July by Menominee County Prosecutor Jeffrey Rogg and Helfert’s attorney, Trenton Stupak. Helfert was initially charged with two counts of first-degree sexual misconduct over allegations of sexually assaulting a 13-year-old boy.

“I have been working long and hard on these cases, plural, for almost five years,” Rogg told the court. “It’ll be five years next month.”

As part of Helfert’s no contest plea, the charge was changed to a felony count of attempted first-degree sexual contact.

Although the victim was not in court today, Rogg says the agreement respects his wishes.

“When I spoke to the victim on Wednesday after our court meeting, he confirmed that he did not want to be here today,” Rogg said. The prosecutor then turned to members of the media and others in attendance and shouted, “He wants to be left alone!”

Stupak said this conviction closes the book on what he called the “Menominee County Horror Story.”

“I believe it has come to a fitting end with the final conviction that closes all cases known to the prosecutor for myself and allows Mr. Helfert to live out the rest of his life,” Stupak said.

Friday’s verdict does not mean that Helfert will remain behind bars any longer. He is serving the sentence of 40 months to five years concurrently with his previous sentence of 9 to 15 years.

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