Violent Texas Sex Offender Absconder Arrested in Barry

By Benjamin Cox on June 14, 2022 at 2:34pm

Pike County authorities arrested a violent sex offender from the State of Texas after juveniles reported a suspicious man on a bicycle in Barry on Sunday.

Pike County Sheriff David Greenwood reports that on Sunday at 6:34PM the Pike County Sheriff’s Department received a call of a suspicious person traveling on a bicycle in Barry. The complainant told police that her juvenile daughter and a friend were out walking around Barry when an older man riding a bicycle approached them and began speaking with them.

Subsequent to an investigation, 62 year old Robert W. Niffen of Houston, Texas was arrested on a Texas Department of Corrections parole violation warrant. The Texas Department of Corrections warrant listed Niffen’s original charges as aggravated rape and escape from a penal institution. The Texas Department of Corrections also listed Niffen as a violent sex offender absconder. Greenwood says that Niffen has a lengthy criminal history.

Niffen was further charged for obstructing justice after he allegedly provided a false name to officers and failure to register as a sex offender.

Niffen’s bond has been set at $150,000 for the new charges. Niffen’s Texas parole violation warrant has no bond. According to Pike County court records, no extradition hearing has been set as of press time.