A high-risk predatory offender living in Albert Lea was sentenced to three years probation last week for soliciting a 15-year-old girl to engage in sexual conduct.

If Paul Arthur Berg, 61, violates his probation he could face up to two years and one month in prison.

The sentence came Thursday from Freeborn County District Court Judge Steve Schwab after Berg pleaded guilty to the charge in February.

Schwab gave Berg credit for 197 days already spent in the Freeborn County jail and ordered the man have no unapproved contact with anyone under 18, have no unapproved use of computers or cell phones, and adhere to a curfew, among other conditions.

Berg is classified as a Level 3 offender because he has the highest likelihood of reoffending.

Albert Lea police and the Freeborn County attorney held a public meeting in March to inform the community about Berg, who was assigned the risk level in December after being evaluated at a Minnesota treatment facility.

Berg, who has lived in Albert Lea most of his life, is living near the intersection of Capri Avenue and Gene Street.

According to police, he has a history of sexual contact with girls ages 4 to 5, including fondling. He also has a history of sexual conduct with girls ages 9 to 15, including soliciting victims for sex and indecent exposure in public.

Police stated he was known to the 4- to 5-year-old victims but not to the 9- to 15-year-old victims.

In the most recent offense, he reportedly walked up to a 15-year-old girl in downtown Albert Lea in May 2012 and asked her to have sex.

The girl reportedly called her father, who arrived and chased Berg down Broadway toward Sterling Drug. When officers arrived, the girl’s father had him pinned down to the ground.

In court Thursday, Schwab also ordered Berg submit to a polygraph, complete predatory offender requirements, undergo a psychiatric evaluation, have no access to sexually-explicit materials and attend an AA or NA meeting weekly.

In addition, he must take all of his prescribed medications.