A convicted sex offender who was recently released from prison is now back in custody after attempting to meet with an undercover officer posing as a 15-year-old girl.
David Lee Sims, 46, of Houston, was arrested Tuesday and charged with online solicitation of a minor, a first-degree felony. At the time of his arrest, Sims had a box of condoms and a package of Skittles candy.
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The arrest followed a two-month investigation by the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit of the Office of Alan Rosen, Harris County Constable Precinct 1.
Sims used a social media application to communicate with the undercover officer, whom he believed to be a minor, in a sexually explicit manner. He sent explicit images and videos and arranged to meet the minor at her home.
Sims is currently on parole for a previous conviction of online solicitation of a minor, which resulted from a 2020 arrest in Montgomery County. In that case, he attempted to meet a 12-year-old for sexual purposes. Since his release from prison on Dec. 6, 2024, Sims has been residing in a Texas Department of Criminal Justice halfway house.
He had requested permission to leave the halfway house to obtain a driver’s license from the Texas Department of Public Safety. Instead, he traveled on a Houston METRO bus to meet with the minor.
Sims was booked into the Harris County Jail without incident, and his parole will be revoked due to the new arrest, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.
The Harris County Precinct 1 Constable’s Office urges anyone with information regarding Sims’s interactions with children to contact the Internet Crimes Against Children Unit at 713-222-4929. The Constable’s Office is affiliated with the Houston-Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.
