2 Okmulgee Businessmen Accused Of Soliciting Sex From Teenage Boy

Two prominent Okmulgee businessmen are accused with soliciting sex from a 15-year-old boy. Investigators say they met the teen through a smartphone app that allows gay men to meet.

Ike's Downtown Pub and Eatery was opened in 2011 by Dwight Beard and Justin Pollard.

It's a popular restaurant where, we're told, the line for a table is almost always out the front door.

"Brought new life to the downtown area, which is our square...really the main thing of Okmulgee," said Okmulgee resident Paul Orosco.

Orosco said the men were active in fundraisers to promote Okmulgee and had plans to turn the old Kennedy Building into a new retail and dining establishment.

Around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, 48-year-old Beard and 40-year-old Pollard were arrested in Longtown, near Eufaula.

3/10/2013 Related Story: 2 Okmulgee Men Arrested After Meeting Teen Boy For Sex, Deputies Say

Investigators say they spotted a Hummer being driven by Beard swerving across the road. When they pulled him over, they found a nervous 15-year-old boy in the vehicle.

According to the sheriff's office, the boy was acting nervous, so deputies brought him back to the patrol car. He initially told them the men worked with his father, then bolted from the car.

One of the deputies chased down the boy and brought him back to the car, where he reportedly told them he met the two men through a smartphone app for gay men. He said they had been exchanging nude photos for a week and they were on their way to a nearby hotel.

Sheriff Joel Kerns said investigators found condoms and cell phones inside the Hummer.

Beard and Pollard's downtown business neighbors say the men were very nice and would do anything for anybody.

"It's kind of shocking. I couldn't believe it. It's sad to see something like that in the news. It's going to be a black eye for us here in Okmulgee, and we don't like that. We want more positive things. There are positive things going on in this town and we want more of them," Orosco said.

The OSBI has been brought in to go through the cell phones.

The Sheriff said they're trying to determine if the men had done this before to another underage victim.