On Friday, May 13 at approximately 11 a.m., officers with the Great Bend Police Department received a report of a sex offense involving two juvenile females occurring at a residence in Great Bend.
Officers and detectives began compiling details and evidence of the report alleging multiple sex offenses that had begun within Kansas back in 2015 and 2016. It was reported that the suspect involved in this investigation had left his residence in a black 2013 Dodge Ram pickup, with most of his belongings, in an unknown direction of travel.
During the course of the investigation, detectives requested a ping of his location using the suspect's cellular phone. A number of locations were checked and the suspect, Joseph Cruse, age 41, was located a short time later by officers in a motel parking lot in the 700 block of 10th Street in Great Bend.
Cruse was arrested without further incident and transported to the Barton County Detention Center where he was booked on charges of rape, aggravated indecent liberties with a child and aggravated criminal sodomy.
Cruse remains incarcerated at the detention center in lieu of a $1,000,000 bond.
This investigation is still ongoing. Anyone with any information in reference to this case is urged to contact the Great Bend Police Department at 620-793-4120 or Crime Stoppers at 620-792-1300.