A Wellston volunteer firefighter is behind bars in the Lincoln County Jail, accused of sexually assaulting a young girl over a span of "two to four years."

Acting on a report to the Oklahoma Department of Human Services that a girl was the possible victim of child molestation, investigators questioned Stephen Sellers, Jr., who served for eight years as a volunteer firefighter in Wellston, a small town of about 800 people.

Authorities say that when they questioned Sellers, he admitted to engaging in sex acts with the child, who told investigators the assaults were "disgusting and physically painful." Law enforcement officers arrested the accused man on complaints of

rape, forcible sodomy and lewd or indecent acts to a child. As of this writing, he remains in the Lincoln County jail and has not yet been formally charged with any crime.

The potential penalties for the crimes of which Sellers is accused are severe. First degree rape is punishable by 5 years to life in prison. Forcible sodomy is punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison. Lewd or indecent proposals or acts to a child under 16 is punishable by a maximum of 20 years in prison if the child involved is aged 12 or older. If, however, the child is under the age of 12, the crime is punishable by 25 years to life in prison.

All three felony sex crimes are considered to be Level III sex offenses. This means anyone convicted of one or more of these crimes in Oklahoma must register as a lifetime sex offender. 

Sex offender registration carries with it numerous restrictions and penalties:

  • Convicted sex offenders must register with local law enforcement and provide address verification every 90 days, every 6 months, or annually depending on the level assigned to the crime of which they were convicted.
  • They must notify law enforcement if they will be leaving the state or visiting the state.
  • They may be required to wear a GPS ankle monitor.
  • Certain sex offenders will be required to have the words “SEX OFFENDER” blazoned across their drivers’ licenses.
  • They are not allowed to live within 2,000 feet of a school or child care facility, leaving less the 20 percent of Oklahoma City available for housing.
  • Those convicted of sex crimes against children under 13 may not enter within a 500 foot “zone of safety” near schools, day cares, playgrounds, or parks. 
  • A sex offender may not live with another sex offender.
  • If a sex offender's crime involved children, he or she may not live in a home with children, unless they are his or her own children and were not the victims of the crime.

Learn more about Oklahoma Sex Offender Registration.