A man who contaminated sweets with sleeping medication and provided them to youngsters at a summer camp in the area has admitted sexual offences against two children aged nine and ten years old.
The accused was detained after eight children and an older person became sick at the facility in July.
The elderly man, from the Nottinghamshire area, admitted guilt to a series of 17 offences when he stood at Leicester Crown Court on recently.
Yet, he denied one particular crime he was accused of, which was involving a nine-year-old boy.
The defendant was kept in jail ahead of a additional proceeding on late November.
'Treat game'
Mary Prior KC, prosecuting, detailed the defendant's actions to the court.
She explained his victims were children from difficult backgrounds who were participating in a summer program which he ran.
Ruben played a "treat game" with the youngsters, the legal counsel said, in which he would access the boys' rooms when they were settling down and tell them to ingest treats "as quickly as they can".
She told the court the defendant had played this game with the boys "for many years", and children had earlier experienced illness the subsequent day.
She said Ruben had been capable of justifying this for many years as the youngsters being "overstimulated by activities", until his stepson had concerns in July 2025.
The prosecutor added: "In the summer" his stepchild had concerns about what was going on, for good reason.
"They decided to examine in the individual's items."
The legal counsel said objects including lubricant, Vaseline and injection devices were found, and his stepchild notified the police about his suspicions.
She explained the defendant proceeded to conduct the "sweet game" with six boys that evening - that Saturday - and they were all ill the following morning.
"Authorities" had not gone out by that stage," she added.
The oversight body, the police conduct office, had stated that it was examining the police response of the situation.
The prosecutor said the children were having difficulty walking due to their sickness, so the stepson contacted the law enforcement once more.
She stated Ruben then played the "candy game" in a space of five minors.
