More criminal charges are coming for registered sex offender Melvin Platt, an Oklahoma County prosecutor said in court Monday, but a long-delayed motion to revoke his bond was postponed again.
Platt was convicted of assault with intent to commit the felony of sexual battery and domestic assault and battery in 2024, for which he served two months in the Oklahoma County Jail with the remainder of his sentence suspended. He was re-arrested three weeks later after leading police on a chase spurred by his use of vehicle with a stolen tag. That caused Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna to file a motion to revoke Platt’s suspended sentence in November 2024.
But Behenna’s motion has lingered for more than a year, and Platt has remained free despite the new charges for eluding police and possessing stolen property, all while EPD reviewed additional allegations that he is a serial sexual abuser.
Michele McElwee, Oklahoma County assistant district attorney and team leader for the special victims unit, told District Judge Cindy Truong on Monday that she met with a detective from EPD last week and confirmed more charges against Platt are being recommended. McElwee said Platt’s attorney, Scott Anderson, was informed of the charges and requested another continuance on the motion to revoke while waiting for the newest charges to be filed.
“I’ll get it filed, it’s been on my radar,” McElwee told Truong.
Platt’s case gained notoriety as sexual assault victims have continued to raise concerns about how their cases are handled in Oklahoma County. In Platt’s case, EPD has been reviewing a “significant amount of digital evidence” since August 2024, according to spokeswoman Emily Ward.
The duration of the investigative process has contributed to the grievances of sexual assault survivors, like Christy de la Torre, who Platt was convicted of assaulting in 2021 after they had dated but broken up. De la Torre told Edmond police that Platt attacked her outside her back door, held her hostage and photographed her against her will. Ultimately, Platt pleaded no contest to a pair of charges in exchange for others being dismissed, but between his plea being entered and his sentence being decided, De la Torre said she became aware of other potentially criminal sexual behavior by Platt: a trove of videos Platt allegedly made of himself having sex with women. The videos were revealed to de la Torre by a woman who had also dated Platt — and who initially defended him.
After the motion to revoke Platt’s suspended sentence was delayed again Monday, de la Torre again criticized his pending prosecution.
“The DA struck a plea agreement with Melvin Platt which allowed him to have several charges dropped in order to get a conviction on lesser charges,” de la Torre said. “[Monday’s delay] was another slap in the face for the injuries I incurred and the torment that my children and I endured. Oklahoma County and City of Edmond residents deserve and should demand better.”
Jacqui Ford, a defense attorney who entered an appearance in Platt’s case as de la Torre’s victim advocate, told Truong that Platt is a “flight risk” owing to evidence obtained after his police chase and the new discussion of upcoming charges. (An OKCPD spokesperson previously told NonDoc that Platt discarded “a duffle bag containing some fake documents and a large amount of cash” as he ran from police in October 2024.)
“The basis of his eluding (charge) was because he anticipated these charges were coming,” Ford said. “He’s hearing in open court from us that these charges are coming. We have a serious flight risk concern that I don’t think is the normal flight risk that any defendant could flee.”
Ford requested that Platt be placed in custody Monday or considered for GPS monitoring so he will be “held accountable for the crimes that are coming.”
Anderson argued to Truong that Platt’s consistent court attendance since December 2019 means the possibility of new charges should not “suddenly” classify his client as a flight risk.
Truong said that, while she has sympathy for victims and their concerns, in her 15 years on the bench she has only rejected a prosecutor’s recommendation once. Truong asked McElwee if the state recommended any of Ford’s requests, and McElwee said the district attorney’s office did not. As a result, Truong granted another continuance on the motion to revoke Platt’s suspended sentence until Jan. 5 — more than 13 months after it was initially filed. Platt departed the courthouse, presumably to return to east Norman, where he is registered as a sex offender.
De la Torre said that “even to the simple minded, it would seem that Melvin Platt is a danger to society.”
“It’s unjust and as vile as the crimes committed to have the process take this long and allow perpetrators, like Melvin Platt, to remain free from incarceration,” de la Torre said. “Melvin Platt has continued to break the law and have additional charges brought against him. He has violated his plea agreements for previous violent crimes for which he was found guilty and has gone free for months as his revocation hearing has been delayed six times. Still, he remains free from incarceration. Victims, including myself, have pleaded with multiple members of the DA’s staff and Edmond police investigators to expedite the investigation, file charges and take action before his crimes escalate to murder.”
After Monday’s hearing, Anderson said he had no comment on the cases facing his client.
