OKLAHOMA
News on 6
[with video]
TULSA, Oklahoma – A man who had custody of five children and says he is a volunteer at an Oklahoma Department of Human Services children’s shelter has been arrested on eight sexual abuse complaints.
According to court documents, Timothy Shawn Cato, 50, has cared for the children for several years. He reportedly admitted to bathing the children – ages 7 to 17 – and touching their bodies while they are in the bathtub. Child crisis detectives also said Cato regularly shares sleeping space with the kids in a room away from his wife and own child, an affidavit says.
Police said he used his status in the community with various youth organizations as a way to get children to trust him and, ultimately, abuse them.
A coach, mentor, educator and father figure are the roles Tulsa police said 50-year-old Cato took on to get close to young boys.
“Some of the victims indicated that they had met him through a program at a church where he was a, what they referred to as a commander of their group, that would do scouting-like activities for boys of a younger age,” said Tulsa Police Detective, Sergeant Mike Brown.
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