WARROAD, Minn. — A former northwestern Minnesota police officer has been sentenced to three years in prison for using his position to kidnap, stalk and sexually assault a teenager more than 10 times over the course of several years.

Joshua Matthew Demmerly, 30, was arrested in April and submitted an Alford plea in September, meaning he maintained his innocence but admitted that the facts were sufficient to find him guilty.

The sexual misconduct charge carried a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison, the stalking charge carried up to a 10-year sentence, and the kidnapping charge carried a three-year maximum sentence.

Demmerly became a police officer in Warroad in February 2016 and was previously a deputy in Roseau County.

Court documents indicated that in 2017, Demmerly told the victim, between the ages of 16 and 17, that the Roseau County sheriff’s office was investigating the teen for a felony, but that he would not execute a search warrant on the teen’s phone if the teen spent more time with him.

As the victim tried to avoid Demmerly, he called the victim’s phone repeatedly from multiple numbers, declaring his love and threatening suicide, court documents said. He also provided alcohol to the victim and other teenagers at his home and “told them they had to spend the night since they had been drinking.”

The victim reported waking up naked at Demmerly’s house with no memories of the previous night. Demmerly also would perform traffic stops on the victim while on-duty, forcing the teen to step out of the car for a kiss, according to court documents.