A 60-year-old man from Texas was arrested in Oregon on Thursday on suspicion of wanting to sexually abuse a child, according to both state and federal officials.
The US Department of Justice said that Steven Worth Ellis, who lives in Presidio, Texas, went to Oregon to meet up with a 15-year-old girl he met online.
Ellis is being charged by the federal government with traveling with the plan to engage in sexual activity, trying to sexually exploit a child, and forcing and appealing to a minor.
Multiple types of law enforcement, such as federal officers and the Portland Police Bureau’s Child Abuse Team, were involved in the investigation, which started in late May. The PPB said that their Internet Crimes Against Children Unit got a tip that the girl in Portland was talking to the man and sending him nude pictures.
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Ellis was caught by Oregon State Police Troopers on Thursday and taken into custody in The Dalles. The Department of Homeland Security, The Dalles Police Department, and the U.S. Marshals were also working together with other law enforcement organizations as per KOIN News.
It was a tip from the Oregon Department of Human Services that led to the investigation, which said Ellis had been having sexual online chats with the child after meeting on Reddit. It is said that Ellis told the child that he wanted to marry her and was on his way to Oregon to “get her.”
Ellis went to a federal court in Portland and was arrested. He will stay in jail “pending further court proceedings,” according to officials.