A former park ranger in Houston has been accused of forcing gay men into sexual encounters in the parks where he allegedly beat and robbed them, according to federal prosecutors.
Joey Ellis, 34, was arrested on Tuesday during a court hearing announcing his charges. He was originally in court to face three charges in Harris County, two of which were for official oppression, and one for sexual assault.
Federal prosecutors allege that Ellis forced victims into paying him money or performing sexual acts on him. Those alleged victims were all visiting Houston city parks in the evenings when the attacks took place.
The 20-count indictment came down on December 3, alleging that Ellis violated the civil rights of eight victims.
According to the indictments, Ellis allegedly confiscated the victim’s driver’s licenses and threatened to have their vehicles towed unless they paid him off or had sex with him.
The indictments include troubling details of the alleged attacks. Instances of groping, forced nudity, and using a gun to intimidate a victim are listed among Ellis's alleged violations.
The investigation into Ellis began after two men came forward in June with allegations that they'd been robbed by a park ranger at Cullen Park, according to NBC 2 Houston.
One of the men who came forward claimed that Ellis threatened to arrest him if he did not either pay him or perform sex acts on him. He said Ellis made him pull his pants down, hand over his license and then threatened to take him to jail if he didn't comply with his demands for sex or cash. The man said he reluctantly paid Ellis $260.
That individual claims they ran into Ellis a second time at the park, and that he again threatened him with arrest.
“He was like ‘You already know the routine. I told you not to be out here, you know one or two things.’" the man reportedly told police.
He tried to drive off, but Ellis allegedly gave chase and tried to sideswipe him. The man eventually managed to shake Ellis, after which he reported the incident to police.
According to the FBI, the parks where Ellis worked are popular meet-up spots for gay men. Officials say Ellis may have been targeting victims for years before he was caught and had worked for the City of Houston since 2019.
The FBI is requesting that anyone else who may have been attacked, or witnessed potential crimes related to the case to contact the agency.
Ellis's defense attorneys said the former ranger is innocent and vowed to fight the charges.
