Alberta MLA Mike Allen is shown in this police handout booking photo from Ramsey County Sheriff's Office in St. Paul, Minn.. The Alberta politician has resigned from the governing Conservative caucus after being arrested by Minnesota police in a prostitution sting.HANDOUT/The Canadian Press
An Alberta politician arrested in a prostitution sting in Minnesota has decided to not resign his seat.
Mike Allen said in a statement Friday that he spent the past three months talking with people in his constituency of Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo.
"Those I have met have been very honest and direct about their feelings on this issue," Allen wrote. "I acknowledge I have hurt and disappointed many, especially those who elected me.
"I say again to all of you – I apologize."
Allen said people have offered him forgiveness and support and he plans to serve out his term.
"I promise to work tirelessly to regain the trust I have lost through this period."
Allen was arrested in July while on a government trip in St. Paul.
A court document alleges that Allen phoned a number listed on an online ad, agreed to pay $200 for sex with two women and was met by an undercover officer. It's alleged he had just put some cash on a counter and was starting to undress when other police officers entered the room and placed him under arrest.
Allen was charged with gross misdemeanour of solicitation of prostitution, which carries a maximum sentence of one year in jail and a $3,000 fine.
The rookie member of the legislature resigned from Premier Alison Redford's Progressive Conservative caucus immediately after his arrest and now sits as an Independent.
The 51-year-old, who is single with grown adult children, has not discussed specifics of the case. But he did tell the Fort McMurray Today newspaper that he had ended a serious relationship prior to the St. Paul trip and was lonely.
His next court date is set for Nov. 13 in St. Paul.