Houston-area man accused of selling real Texas disabled parking placards for $150 on Facebook Marketplace

HOUSTON - A 28-year-old Houston-area man is facing a third-degree felony charge after investigators said he ran an online hustle selling authentic, state-issued disabled parking placards on social media.

David T. Brown was arrested Monday by detectives with the Harris County Constable Precinct 1 Criminal Investigations and Tax Office Investigations Unit. He is charged with tampering with a government record.

Man accused of selling authentic disabled parking placards on social media

The allegations:

Authorities said Brown was selling the permanent-disability placards on Facebook Marketplace and OfferUp for $150 each. The placards, which allow qualified drivers with mobility issues to park in designated accessible spaces and skip municipal parking meter fees, are issued at no cost by the State of Texas through local county tax offices.

According to Harris County Constable Alan Rosen, the scheme involved more than just reselling free items. Investigators allege Brown took buyers’ actual driver’s license numbers and manually wrote them onto the stolen or leaked placards to make them appear legitimately issued to the driver.

Undercover deputies perusing the online marketplaces discovered the listings and set up a sting operation to purchase the items. Brown was arrested with 18 authentic placards in his possession.

"Aside from being against the law, this is wrong on many other levels," Rosen said. "Disabled parking is for people who are truly disabled and have a legally issued permit."

What they're saying:

Rosen noted the case was deeply personal to him because he has a family member in a wheelchair who relies heavily on the availability of accessible parking. He added that people using the spaces illegally for sheer convenience or to avoid parking fees are actively harming the disabled community.

The arrest has also sparked a wider investigation into a potential "inside job" at a Texas municipal office.

Court records and serial numbers indicate the seized placards were not assigned through the Harris County Tax Office, which cooperates closely with Precinct 1 investigators. However, because the placards are authentic state documents, authorities believe they were leaked or obtained illicitly from a tax assessor-collector's office elsewhere in the state.

"They did come from a tax office somewhere in the state of Texas," Rosen said, confirming that detectives are digging deeper to find the source. "... and we want to hold that person accountable too."

Investigators are currently working to determine exactly how Brown acquired the stack of documents and how many he may have successfully sold. There is currently no evidence that stolen identities were used to acquire the permits.

Authorities also issued a stern warning to anyone who may have purchased a placard from Brown, noting that deputies patrolling local shopping centers and grocery stores will be actively looking for the altered tags.

"The gig is up. You're not gonna be able to use these around town," Rosen said. "Not only was the individual selling them charged with a crime, but the people that have these, that are using these, that purchased these from him are also subject to arrest as well."

Using an illegally obtained placard carries misdemeanor criminal charges, Rosen urged anyone who bought a placard from Brown to destroy it or stop using it immediately.

What you can do:

Anyone with information is asked to call investigators at (713) 755-5200.

What's next:

Brown appeared in court Monday evening and posted a $10,000 bond. He is scheduled to return to court Wednesday morning. 

If convicted of the third-degree felony, he faces two to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.

Anyone with information regarding the sale or distribution of these placards is asked to contact Constable Precinct 1 investigators at 713-755-5200.

Harris CountyNewsCrime and Public SafetyTop Stories