George Barnes - Repeat Sex Offender - Is anyone surprised?

A convicted sex offender is in jail after one of his neighbors helped police catch him.

The man, 43-year-old George Barnes, spent six years in jail for sexually assaulting a 6-year-old boy. Barnes was released from prison in early 2008.

Barnes has now been accused of abusing a second young child. According to investigators, a 7-year-old girl came forward and told them Barnes "touched her where he was not supposed to" and "kissed her with his mouth open."

Police arrested Barnes Wednesday night at an apartment complex on West Cheryl near Hillcrest on the Northwest Side.

There are dozens of children living at the complex, and Woodlawn Hills Elementary is less than a mile away. Parents in the area are breathing a sigh of relief now that they know Barnes is behind bars and no longer near their children.

Neighbor April Valenciano lives less than 15 feet away from Barnes' apartment.

"He walked around this apartment so much," said Valenciano. "I've kept my brothers and my kids inside. I didn't even let my kids play on the playground."

Valenciano has four young children and knew all about Barnes' criminal past. She found out about Barnes on the Texas DPS Sex Offender Registry.

When asked if she was worried, Valenciano responded, "I have a 4-year-old and a 6-year-old little girl."

Valenciano told other parents living in the complex to watch out for their kids. She also warned management.

When police showed up looking to arrest Barnes at his apartment, Valenciano kept an eye out for him. She alerted police when he came home. Minutes later, Barnes was handcuffed and put inside a police car.

Officials said Barnes was able to live so close to children and a school because he served his sentence and does not have the restrictions a parolee or someone on probation might have. The only thing Barnes was required to do was register as a sex offender and update the state if and when he moved.

There are more than 53,000 registered sex offenders in Texas.

You can track registered sex offenders at FamilyWatchDog.us. You just type in your address and the offender's information is provided. You can also run a background check on someone.

"25% of all sex offenders re-offend within 15 years"
.........Sarah Tofte