A Houston gang member was sentenced to 45 years in prison for a fatal head-on collision triggered by him going nearly double the speed limit through the Washburn Tunnel and veering into oncoming traffic, prosecutors said Friday.

Christopher Simms, 36, was convicted of aggravated assault following a four-day trial, in which his guilt and punishment were determined by a jury.

“This is a really dangerous guy, who has already been sentenced to prison five times,” Assistant District Attorney Ryan Trask said.

“And eerily enough, his brother Tucker Sims, was sentenced to prison in 2016 after being convicted for driving the wrong way in crash in which he killed two people,” Trask said.

(Note to media: One brother spells last name Sims. The other spells it Simms.)

Simms, a member of the Houstone Tango Blast gang, was either behind bars, charged with a crime, or on parole for a crime, almost exclusively from 1999 to present, said Trask of the district attorney’s Vehicular Crimes Division.

In February 2016, Simms was driving a sedan at more than 60 mph seconds before he slammed into a van driven by Eduardo Gonzalez Pineda, 55,

Pineda died seven days later at the hospital.

Pineda’s adult son and a daughter testified during the proceeding that ended  Thursday, about how his loss has impacted the family, especially his grandchildren.

“We forgive him, but he’ll have to live with this the rest of his life,” Pineda’s son said.

Ebony C. Fleming

Public Information Officer

Harris County District Attorney’s Office