By Patti Weaver
STILLWATER — A 38-year-old man on probation for lewd acts with a child has been jailed on $10,000 bond pending an April 10 preliminary hearing on a charge accusing him of a residence violation by living across from Cushing High School.
If convicted of being a sex offender living within 2,000 feet of a school from Feb. 14 through Feb. 17, Ruben Roy Torres could be given as much as a three-year prison term and a $3,000 fine, according to the felony charge filed last week.
Torres was arrested at 10:12 am on Feb. 17 in the 800 block of E. Main Street in Cushing after a woman arrived at the police station at 9:23 am to talk about a child-related issue, an affidavit said
She reported that “her church had been assisting a male named Ruben, whose last name she did not know,” Cushing Police Officer David Smith wrote in an affidavit.
“She advised that the church had paid for a room for Ruben on Saturday and Sunday and for the upcoming week and was planning to help him obtain his Social Security card and identification.
“(She) stated that earlier in the day she went to (his room) at the Wilshire Inn located across the street from Cushing High School and picked up Ruben. She said she asked him about his situation after hearing conflicting information.
“(She) stated Ruben disclosed he was afraid to return to prison and was not safe in Chandler. She asked him if he had done something and was attempting to avoid consequences, and he responded yes,” the affidavit alleged.
She said she returned him to his room at the Wilshire Inn and went to the police department to report the incident, the affidavit said.
After Officer James Robinson saw Torres walking westbound on E. Main Street from Linwood, Officer Smith talked to him, the affidavit said.
“I asked Ruben if he had identification; he stated he did not. I asked how long he had been staying in Cushing; he replied, ‘for a while.’ When I asked Ruben why he had not registered with the Cushing Police Department if he had been living in Cushing, I could not understand his response.
“A records check showed Ruben is listed as an aggravated sex offender with a registered address in Chandler. Officer Robinson contacted personnel in Lincoln County, who advised Ruben had been listed as AWOL from his registered address since Saturday, Jan. 14, 2026.
“Ruben stated he was brought to Cushing by a friend because he did not have a job and had nothing to do. He stated he last checked in with the registry approximately two weeks ago in Chandler. Ruben further stated he was heading back to Chandler because he was afraid of going back to jail.
“When asked why he came to Cushing, he stated he had been talking to a girl and disclosed she was eight years old. Ruben stated he met the girl at (a church) in Purcell and obtained her phone number from a website he could not recall.
“I asked Ruben about his phone, and he stated he broke it because he had been communicating with an underage girl. He later stated the phone was left at his residence in Chandler. Ruben stated he calls her every weekend and last spoke with her the previous weekend.
“When asked again how long he had been in Cushing, he stated approximately one week. Lincoln County authorities advised they had not received any notification of an address change from Ruben. The Cushing Police Department had also not been notified of an address change. Officers confirmed with Wilshire Inn and the reporting party that Ruben was staying,” there, Officer Smith alleged in his affidavit.
According to the state Department of Corrections, Torres had been convicted four years ago in McClain County of lewd acts with a child under 16 in 2020 and placed on probation for 25 years.
