DHS student helps police nab registered sex offender

A registered sex offender was arrested Tuesday afternoon in Desert Hot Springs after allegedly trying to lure a local student into his car.

Scroll down to see list of Registered Sex Offenders in the Coachella Valley

Desert Hot Springs Police Chief Dale Mondary tells CBS Local 2 and KESQ a student reported to staff at Painted Hills Middle School that a man approached him at the school and asked him to get into his car at about 3:00 p.m.

The student says the man told him he knew the boy’s mother. The boy refused to get in the car, which he described as being tan in color, and wrote down the license plate as the car drove away.

Desert Hot Springs police checked the plates, which showed the car belonged to Dickie Hibbitts, 60, a registered sex offender.

Hibbitts was positively identified by the student, and was arrested and booked on charges of annoying or molesting a child. Hibbitts sex offender status shows he was charged with lewd or lascivious acts with a child under 14 years of age, according to the Megan’s Law California Registered Sex Offender’s list.

The list also shows that there are 103 registered sex offenders living in Desert Hot Springs. The total number of registered sex offenders listed in Riverside County is 2,978.

Chief Mondary says that the man never physically touched the boy, but additional charges could be added at a later date, due to the fact he is a registered sex offender. He was transferred to Riverside County Jail in Banning.

Any information regarding this incident should be directed to the Desert Hot Springs Police Department,, (760) 329-2904 Ext. or the Watch Commander, (760) 329-2904 Ext.302.

If you wish to remain anonymous you can call Crime Stoppers at (760) 341-STOP.

Coachella Valley sex offenders by city (Listed on Megan’s Law):

Desert Hot Springs – 103
Indio – 78
Palm Springs – 60
Cathedral City – 48
Palm Desert – 32
Coachella – 24
La Quinta – 17
Rancho Mirage – 12
Thermal – 10
Mecca – 2
Indian Wells – 0