Thomas Ray Kelso, Sexual Harassment, Arkansas 2025

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Former Property Owner Sued for Sexual Harassment in Arkansas

A lawsuit has been filed against Thomas Ray Kelso, the former owner and manager of rental properties in Searcy, Arkansas, for engaging in sexual harassment and retaliation in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Arkansas, alleges that Kelso sexually harassed female tenants beginning in 2001, until his arrest in 2023, and conviction for federal sex trafficking charges in 2025.

According to the complaint, Kelso made repeated and unwelcome sexual comments to female tenants, touched female tenants’ bodies without their permission, requested sexual contact, offered reduced or free rent in exchange for sexual contact and took retaliatory actions against female tenants who refused his sexual advances, including threatening to cut electricity or denying laundry access.

‘No one should have to endure sexual harassment to keep a roof over his or her head,’ said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division.

The lawsuit seeks monetary damages to compensate persons harmed by the alleged harassment, civil penalties to vindicate the public interest, and a court order barring future discrimination.

Avatar Investments LLC, which owned the rental properties during Kelso’s management and sexual harassment of female tenants, has also been named as a defendant in the lawsuit.

Thomas Ray Kelso, Defendant, was convicted for federal sex trafficking charges in 2025. He was arrested in 2023 and had a period of alleged crimes from 2001 to 2023. Kelso was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. The lawsuit seeks monetary damages and civil penalties.

The Justice Department’s Housing Discrimination Tip Line is available for victims of sexual harassment by landlords or property managers at 1-800-896-7743 or online.