Missouri Patrol, Michigan Police investigate alleged 2022 abuse

A Washburn man has been arrested for alleged sexual misconduct in the summer of 2022 following a join investigation by Missouri and Michigan authorities.

The Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control arrested Maynard Burlen Lipscomb, 70, of Washburn on Aug. 10, for sexual misconduct involving a child following an investigation by the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control/Troop D Criminal Investigative Unit. Investigators with the Michigan State Police assisted in the investigation.

On July 26, investigators received information from the Michigan State Police of a juvenile female who reported she was the victim of a sexual assault alleged to have occurred during the summer 2022 in Barry County.

On Aug. 10, investigators with the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control interviewed the suspect in the sexual assault, Maynard Burlen Lipscomb, who allegedly confessed to having had inappropriate sexual contact with the juvenile female.

On Aug. 11, Lipscomb was formally charged by Barry County Prosecutor Amy Boxx with two counts of sexual misconduct involving a child. He is currently being held in the Barry County Jail on a $50,000, cash-only bond.

The charges are mere accusation and are not evidence of guilt, a Patrol press release said. Evidence in support of these charges must be presented before a court of competent jurisdiction whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.