State funded some trips for ex-North Dakota senator charged with traveling to pay for sex with minor

By JACK DURA
Associated Press

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — State funds covered at least three trips to Prague by a former North Dakota lawmaker who has been charged with traveling to the city in Czech Republic to have sex with a minor, according to a group that organized the travel. Travel records from the North Dakota School Boards Association show that former state senator Ray Holmberg used public funding for trips in 2011, 2018 and 2019 to Prague and other cities such as Amsterdam and Berlin. The trips were through the Germany-based Global Bridges teacher exchange program, which received funding from the North Dakota Legislature. It’s unclear whether the alleged conduct took place on any of the state-funded trips. The 79-year-old Holmberg has pleaded not guilty.