Sex offender suspected in teen's alleged rape turns himself in

CLEVELAND, TX

On Monday, officials asked for the public's help in finding Larry Edward Tullos, 33. On Tuesday afternoon they say he surrendered to the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office by walking up to the jail and turning himself in to a deputy.

Tullos is being called a suspect in the girl's alleged sex assault, though they are still waiting for test results to come back.

"She became impaired at some point and disoriented. She has alleged that she was held down and sexually assaulted. She has alleged that there may even be more than one person involved in the assault itself," Liberty County Sheriff's Office Capt. Rex Evans said.

Detectives say the alleged victim had been at a gathering at the home of Cleveland ISD School Board President Lloyd Lewis, but the parents were not there. Tullos has already been charged with providing alcohol to minors for the party that, according to investigators, occurred November 9 at the home of the school board president.

Tullos is a registered sex offender and faces a probation violation on a sexual assault of a child out of Montgomery County. He also has a history of assault, weapons and theft charges.

Investigators say there were several teens present at the party. Three of them -- 20-year-old Kyle Lewis and 17-year-old Rachel Lewis and 18-year-old Shelby Lofton -- have also been charged with giving false statements to investigators. Kyle and Rachel Lewis are the children of the Cleveland ISD school board president.

Authorities are still not sure how Tullos knew the kids, but they believe that access to alcohol may have been the connection.

We've been working on this story with our friends at Houston Community Newspapers. You can read more in the Cleveland Advocate.

Copyright © 2024 KTRK-TV. All Rights Reserved.