A Great Bend man who is a registered sex offender was arrested at noon Wednesday, Oct. 30, in connection with a sex offense that was reported to police by staff at Great Bend Middle School on the morning of Oct. 17. Nicholas Schwerdtfeger, 34, was booked into the Barton County Jail on a charge of aggravated indecent liberties with a child and held in lieu of $1 million bond.

Great Bend Police officers investigated the report from a teenage student regarding an alleged incident that had occurred during the month of September at a location in Great Bend. The case was sent to the Barton County Attorney’s Office and an arrest warrant was issued for Schwerdtfeger.

Schwerdtfeger is registered on the Kansas Bureau of Investigation’s website as a sex offender. He was previously convicted of attempted aggravated sexual battery of a 20-year-old victim that occurred on April 7, 2007, and of attempted indecent solicitation of a 16-year-old child for a sexual act that occurred on July 6 of 2007. Both crimes occurred in Great Bend.

School officials said the recent incident did not happen on school grounds and Schwerdtfeger is not a USD 428 employee.

The investigation is still ongoing. Anyone with any information in reference to this case is urged to contact the Great Bend Police Department by calling 620-793-4120 or Crime Stoppers at 620-792-1300.