Cody man alleged to have encouraged 17-year-old to become prostitute

Posted 9/20/18

A 78-year-old Cody man is facing a felony charge for allegedly trying to convince a 17-year-old girl to work for him as a prostitute.

Kenneth “Val” Geissler allegedly told the teen …

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Cody man alleged to have encouraged 17-year-old to become prostitute

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A 78-year-old Cody man is facing a felony charge for allegedly trying to convince a 17-year-old girl to work for him as a prostitute.

Kenneth “Val” Geissler allegedly told the teen that “he would give [her] ‘clients’ around town and pay her $500 per hour,” charging documents from Cody police say.

Geissler is also alleged to have tried to start a relationship with the girl this summer — “forcibly” kissing her and repeatedly suggesting that she pay off her car loan by having sex with him.

The girl told police that Geissler suggested he could “train” her as a prostitute, saying he would tell and show her what people wanted. Charging documents say the charges are based on interviews with the girl and two of her friends, letters Geissler allegedly sent to her and statements he allegedly made in a recorded phone call with the girl.

Geissler, a well-known horseman, singer and cowboy poet, was arrested at his South Fork home on the afternoon of Sept. 6. He was charged with promoting prostitution and a misdemeanor count of unlawful contact relating to the alleged kiss.

Geissler’s bond was set at $25,000 at a Sept. 7 appearance in Park County’s Circuit Court. His wife posted the cash hours later, freeing Geissler from jail while the case is pending.

While out on bond, Circuit Court Judge Bruce Waters ordered Geissler to have no contact with any females under the age of 18 — and to specifically stay away from the 17-year-old girl.

“There’s to be no contact with her in any way shape or form whatsoever,” Waters told Geissler. “If you were to see her walking down the street, you’re not to wave, smile, stare, glare or anything else.”

The judge also ordered Geissler to stay away from school property — as Geissler is alleged to have approached one of the 17-year-old’s friends after giving a presentation at a Cody school — and to stay away from Cassie’s, a Cody restaurant where Geissler has frequently performed.

“It’s alleged in the affidavit that Mr. Geissler had a ‘client’ from Cassie’s who he was going to prostitute the minor child out to, but that she wasn’t ‘trained up’ at this point to do that,” Park County Prosecuting Attorney Bryan Skoric said in asking that Geissler stay away from the steakhouse.

Skoric had recommended the $25,000 figure for Geissler’s bond. He said in court that there are “very troubling” allegations contained in the 13-page affidavit that was compiled Cody Police Detective Justin Dollard in support of the charges.

Cody police, aided by the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, began investigating the case in August. An adult contacted police after finding sexually explicit letters that Geissler had allegedly sent to the 17-year-old girl.

“The author of the letters specifically used the term ‘whore,’” Dollard wrote in the affidavit. “The author talked about [the girl] performing sexual favors for customers and went into explicit details on how these sexual acts should be done.”

In the letters, the writer says that he sings at Cassie’s and mentions being a horseman and an upcoming “Unbranded” pack trip; Geissler appeared in a 2015 documentary called “Unbranded.” Further, the handwriting used in the letters appeared to match a sample that Cody Police Officer Steven Bassett found in public records at the Park County Courthouse, Dollard wrote.

In interviews with Dollard and DCI Special Agent Juliet Fish, the girl said Geissler — who she’s known for years — began sending the letters after she purchased a vehicle from the 78-year-old.

She told police she’d agreed to pay Geissler $4,000 for the vehicle, with payments of $200 a month. But over the coming weeks, Geissler allegedly suggested she instead pay it off by having sex with him three times.

“[The girl] told Geissler that she wanted to pay for it with money,” Dollard wrote of the girl’s account to law enforcement. “Geissler told [the girl] that his way was better.”

Last month, he allegedly asked the girl to meet with him for a couple of hours, alone; he became upset when she brought her boyfriend, the teen told police.

“Geissler told [the girl] that he was going to let [her] make a ‘car payment’ that night, but could not now because she brought her boyfriend along,” Dollard wrote of the girl’s account. “Geissler told [the girl] that she would never be successful as a ‘whore’ unless she got rid of her boyfriend.”

During their conversation, Geissler is alleged to have stressed the lucrative nature of the business — at one point saying he knew a former porn star in Powell who could tell the 17-year-old “what a good life it was.”

Geissler reportedly told the girl he fantasized about her and told her “that she is what everyone wants, that people would pay ‘top dollar’ for her,” Dollard wrote.

The girl said that while in Geissler’s car last month, he pulled her in and French kissed her; she said she got out of the car and threw up.

She said Geissler told her not to tell anyone about their interactions.

Dollard found that the girl’s story closely matched much of what was written in the letters.

Cody police were continuing to investigate the case, when, on Sept. 5, Geissler made a presentation at a Cody school about the “Unbranded” documentary.

While there, he reportedly approached one of the girl’s friends and offered her a job at his South Fork home.

“Geissler informed [the friend] that he had $10,000 stashed away somewhere for when he dies and that he was going to show [the 17-year-old girl] where the key was at, but he would show [the friend] instead,” Dollard wrote. Geissler also allegedly asked the friend why the girl wasn’t returning his calls.

That friend, who is also 17, told school administrators about the incident and what she knew about his attempts to solicit the girl. School officials were “extremely concerned over Geissler having access to the school and students,” Dollard said.

“With concern growing over Geissler’s continued actions, it was decided that immediate intervention was needed,” Dollard wrote.

Later that day, the detective had the girl place a recorded phone call to Geissler; he said Geissler “verified large portions” of the teen’s story.

“I’ve never forced anything on you, right?” Geissler said at one point on the call.

“The first time you kissed me, that was pretty bad,” the girl responded.

“OK, OK, I didn’t get that from you until you just said that now, but that’s alright,” Geissler allegedly said.

He later asked if the teen had read any of his letters, agreed he’d given the girl the chance to be a “whore” and apparently agreed that he had other girls in town, according to Dollard’s recounting of the conversation.

Cody police officers Dollard and Basset and Park County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Chad McKinney confronted Geissler at his South Fork home shortly after the call ended.

Geissler allegedly said that he thought the officers might be there about the 17-year-old.

Asked for his side of the story, Geissler reportedly said it was “pretty simple.”

“What I was trying to do to start with was trying to help a young person,” Geissler reportedly said before invoking his right to an attorney.

Promoting prostitution is punishable by up to five years of prison time if the person enticed to become a prostitute is a minor; there’s a three-year maximum if the person is an adult.

A preliminary hearing in Geissler’s case is tentatively set for Oct. 15.

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