Sex offender accused of assaulting another child

BOZEMAN (AP) — A convicted sex offender from Three Forks is being investigated after prosecutors say he violated his probation and sexually assaulted another child.

The Bozeman Daily Chronicle reports that 57-year-old Joseph Donald Pippin Jr. was arrested this week for violation of his probation.

In addition to the new assault accusation, Pippin’s probation officer says he violated his sentence by having unauthorized contact with minors, owning child pornography and possessing alcohol.

Pippin was accused of sexually assaulting a 7-year-old girl in 2008. A couple told police that they walked in on Pippin assaulting their daughter while he was babysitting.

Pippin told investigators at the time that he had “innocently kissed” a scar on the girl’s back.

He was given a 20-year suspended prison sentence in 2009.