Harris County

Itasca ISD Superintendent Arrested in Child Sex Sting, Constable Says

Constable says superintendent sent lewd photos of himself to law enforcement posing as a teenage girl

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A Harris County Constable says investigators in his office arrested a North Texas superintendent of schools in a child sex sting on Thursday.

Harris County Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen posted a video message on his Facebook page shortly before 4 p.m. announcing the sting and identifying 47-year-old Itasca superintendent Michael Keith Stevens as one of seven men arrested earlier in the day.

Rosen said Stevens sent lewd photos to undercover investigators posing as teenage girls and asked for nude videos and images in return. The constable said Stevens discussed taking a trip to Houston to meet up with who he thought was a 15-year-old girl for sex. The constable said some of Stevens's photos appeared to have been taken in his Hill County office.

While talking about Stevens in the video, the constable showed several photographs of a man being taken into custody outside Itasca High School, which is adjacent to the district's administration building.

"Ordinarily I would not show mugshots of these defendants, but we are trying to determine if any other children have been solicited by these individuals," Rosen said.

Rosen said the seven men arrested Thursday are being charged with online solicitation of a minor. It's unclear if Stevens has obtained an attorney to speak on his behalf.

NBC 5 reached out to the Itasca ISD on Thursday afternoon who confirmed a detective with the Harris County Sheriff's Department told them the superintendent had been taken into custody and the board of trustees would soon take up the matter. An online posting showed the board of trustees scheduled a special meeting for 7 a.m. Monday, June 5, ahead of the next scheduled meeting on June 8.

"Until more facts are confirmed, no further information can be shared," the district said.

Harris County Pct. 1 Constable's Office
Alan Rosen, Harris County Constable Precinct 1, says his office arrested the Itasca ISD superintendent in a child sex sting on Thursday, June 1, 2023.

According to a post on the Itasca ISD website, Stevens was named superintendent in 2022 and just completed his first full year leading the district. Before moving to Hill County, Stevens worked in several North Texas school districts as an administrator and teacher/coach including the Elektra ISD, Vernon ISD, Palacios ISD and Mesquite ISD.

Mesquite ISD confirmed to NBC 5 that Stevens worked at the district from 2000 to 2006, most recently at Rutherford Elementary. The Mesquite school district said there was nothing to indicate Stevens left the district on anything other than good terms.

"Stevens has been around children his entire work life. He has been a coach, a principal and assistant principal in various towns across North Texas," Rosen said. "He is married with no children."

Rosen urged parents to pay close attention to what activities their children take part in online.

“You must make it a priority to know what your children are doing online. You can see by this sting operation, there are dangerous predators out there grooming our children and can cause great harm," Rosen. "The sheer number of predators, new technology and new apps to keep up with, we must all work together. Predators like the ones we arrested in this sting should scare all of you."

The investigations are ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to call the Harris County Precinct 1 Constable's Office at 713-755-7571.

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