The Brownfield man convicted of trying to rent a 12-year-old Biddeford girl for sex was sentenced to more than 16 years in federal prison.
Michael Berk, 29, was sentenced Monday by U.S. District Court Judge George Z. Singal in United States District Court in Portland. Berk was convicted in May of two felony counts of enticing minors for sex acts. He also pleaded guilty to possessing child pornography.
Berk was sentenced to 200 months in prison for each count of enticing a child and 120 months for possessing child pornography. He must also seek drug and sex offender treatment while in prison. After his release, Berk will be on probation and continue with a sex offender treatment program. He also was fined $300.
Berk offered to pay a Biddeford man $300 a week to have sex with his daughter in September 2008. The man, who was contacted by Berk through the Web site Craigslist, called Biddeford police. With the assistance of the state police computers crimes unit, a meeting was set up with Berk at a Westbrook coffee shop, where he was arrested by a detective.
During Berk’s three-day trial last spring, Berk asserted he was role playing and had no intention of having sex.