Bemidji EMT is accused of drugging, raping girl, 13

A Bemidji ambulance employee who said he has been addicted to child pornography "since the Internet was invented," admitted that he stole narcotics from his employer and drugged a young teen before raping her in her home, according to a criminal complaint.

Emergency medical technician (EMT) Arthur Austin-Ellis Evans, 35, of Hackensack, Minn., was charged in Cass County in the assault two weeks ago of a 13-year-old girl whom he was watching for a relative. Evans was jailed in lieu of $250,000 bail.

Evans told a sheriff's investigator that he's carried out other sexual acts involving children, including taking explicit photos and videos of him touching children, and using hidden cameras to record girls using his bathroom, the charge alleges.

County Attorney Christopher Strandlie told the Bemidji Pioneer that the continuing investigation could lead to more charges against Evans.

According to the criminal complaint:

Evans said that as an employee for Bemidji Ambulance Service Inc. for the past year he contemplated stealing expired drugs and using them to knock out children so he could sexually assault them.

Evans said he saw his chance to carry out his scheme when he was baby-sitting the girl and her two siblings while their parents were at work.

The girl and her mother contacted the Sheriff's Office the next day, and Evans was questioned by a sheriff's investigator and jailed.

Oversight of ambulances in Minnesota and EMTs is governed by the state Emergency Medical Services Regulatory Board.

The agency, which inspects and licenses ambulance and other emergency services every two years, also requires a storage and control policy for all narcotics, said Bob Norlen, a field services supervisor for the board. That tracking includes requiring a licensed service to document when narcotics reach their expiration date, Norlen said.

The board also certifies EMTs. Evans' certification expires at the end of next month.

Norlen said he was unaware whether the board was investigating the Bemidji Ambulance Service or Evans in this incident, adding that he wouldn't be able to confirm such an inquiry until the case was closed.