A Texas man has been charged with federal crimes after he was caught traveling to Oregon, intending to engage in sexual activities with a minor he connected with online. Steven Worth Ellis, 60, of Presidio, Texas, is facing allegations of planning to exploit and entice an underage individual, as reported by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Oregon on June 6th.
The origin of this troubling journey began on the social forum Reddit, where Ellis established communication with the 15-year-old. Their conversations quickly turned sexually explicit. It was reported that Ellis expressed his desire to marry the child and even made travel arrangements to "come get her" from her home in Oregon, and as authorities later discovered, Ellis had a vacation rental booked near the minor’s residence.
Law enforcement, including Homeland Security Investigations and the Portland Police Bureau, was tipped off to Ellis's inappropriate conduct by the Oregon Department of Human Services in late May 2024. Acting on the information provided, investigators tracked Ellis's movements, confirming his departure from Texas and heading toward Oregon.
Ellis was arrested by law enforcement in The Dalles, Oregon en route and subsequently appeared in federal court in Portland, where a judge ordered that he remain detained pending additional court proceedings. This information came directly from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Oregon. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mira Chernick is the named prosecutor assigned to what is undoubtedly a case that will continue to develop as more facts are unearthed and Ellis is brought fully to face the gravity of the charges laid before him.
