INDIANAPOLIS — An Indianapolis man will spend over 50 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to molesting a toddler - less than 10 years after being released for similar crimes.
Joshua Allen Sims, 38, was sentenced Thursday in U.S. District Court to 54 and a half years in prison, followed by lifetime supervised release. This comes after Sims - a registered sex criminal - pled guilty to sexual exploitation of a child, possessing child porn and being a repeat offender.
Sims - who used the alias "Ghost Sims" at the time - was originally convicted in May 2006 of molesting a child in Dekalb County. He was sentenced to seven years in prison and required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life.
Upon his release from prison, Sims repeatedly failed to register as a sex offender multiple times. He was again convicted and sentenced to additional prison time three separate times.
Additionally, between 2013 and 2023, Sims was convicted of other felonies including strangulation, battery, and criminal confinement. Despite the litany of convictions, Sims was free and out of prison in February 2023.
Court documents detail how, between Feb. 23 and March 7, 2023, Sims was entrusted with the care of a child under the age of two. During this time, Sims reportedly forced the toddler to engage in heinous sex acts.
Sims reportedly filmed himself molesting the young child and then sent the videos to other people online. Sims also forced another family member who was in his care to watch as he molested the toddler, court docs allege.
When investigators arrested Sims for these crimes, they recovered data stored on his smartphone and found over 5,000 pictures and 300 videos of children being raped. Some of the more horrific videos reportedly "depicted children being subjected to bestiality and sadomasochistic conduct."
Now, Sims will spend the next 54.5 years behind bars. Upon his release, he will be monitored on supervised release for the rest of his life. Sims was also ordered to pay the victim $10,000 in restitution.
Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, said that Sims continued to molest children despite multiple convictions.
"Undeterred by multiple prison sentences, this pedophile subjected a toddler to horrific sexual abuse, and trafficked in recordings of children being sexually traumatized for his own sick gratification,” Myers said. “We must do all we can to protect our children from sexual predators, including aggressive federal prosecution and imprisonment."
Sims' sentencing was imposed by U.S. District Judge James R. Sweeney II. His case was investigated by IMPD, the U.S. Secret Service and the Indiana ICAC Task Force.
The case was brought forward as part of Project Safe Childhood, a Justice Department initiative launched in May 2006 to combat child sexual exploitation nationwide.