Indiana man convicted of sexually exploiting toddler

An Indianapolis man was sentenced to more than 54 years in prison for sexually exploiting a toddler.

The Justice Department said 38-year-old Joshua Sims of Indianapolis will also have to spend the rest of his life on supervised release once his prison sentence is over. He pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child, possession of child sexual abuse material and committing a sexual offense while required to register as a sex offender.

Court documents show that Sims was responsible for coercing the toddler into sexually explicit behavior and that he himself sexually abused the child between February 23 and March 7, 2023. Police say Sims also forced a family member in his care to watch Sims abuse the toddler. Sims eventually sent videos and images of himself committing sexual abuse to others over the Internet.

Investigators also say they have recovered more than 5,000 images and 300 videos of children being sexually abused and raped, some depicting children as young as toddlers, as well as images of children being subjected to bestiality and sadomasochistic behavior.

In 2006, Sims was convicted of child abuse in DeKalb County and sentenced to seven years in prison. He was required to register as a sex offender for the rest of his life, but over the next twelve years he repeatedly failed to register as a sex offender. He was convicted of failing to register as a sex offender and was sentenced to additional prison time three times. He was also convicted of several other crimes, including strangulation, assault and criminal confinement.

“Undeterred by multiple prison sentences, this pedophile subjected a toddler to horrific sexual abuse and trafficked in recordings of sexually traumatized children for his own morbid gratification,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “We must do everything we can to protect our children from sexual predators, including aggressive federal prosecution and prison sentences. Children are safer today, thanks to our partners at the United States Secret Service, IMPD, the excellent Indiana ICAC Task Force, and our federal prosecutor, because this dangerous criminal will almost certainly spend the rest of his days behind federal prison walls.