Sex Offender Charged After Back-to-Back Armed Robberies in North Kingstown

NORTH KINGSTOWN, RI—A 26-year-old Westerly man and registered sex offender was arrested for allegedly robbing the 7-Eleven on Post Road on Thursday.

Police said Travis Tripp, of 25 White Rock Road, Westerly, is also believed to be the man who robbed the nearby Seasons Corner Market on Wednesday.

In both robberies, Tripp allegedly brandished a silver handgun before demanding cash from the store clerk and the customers who happened to be in the store at the same time.

Police said Tripp was arrested near the scene of the 7-Eleven robbery after officers were dispatched at around 5:10 a.m.

Police were told by witnesses that a short black man wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt with a red untucked shirt and a ski mask had walked in, showed the gun and demanded cash from the clerk and two customers.

Police found him near the scene after several officers fanned out with eyes peeled.

All told, Tripp is facing three counts of robbery and could face additional charges.

In addition to the robbery charges, police charged Tripp with failing to register an address change as a sex offender and driving without the consent of the owner, both felonies.

Police said though Tripp’s address is registered in Westerly, he had been living in North Kingstown and “had taken a vehicle from a North Kingstown resident without the owner’s consent,” police said in a news release.

The matter remains under investigation.

Tripp is currently being held at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston and is due to appear for arraignment at a later date.

Court records show that Tripp has been charged numerous times over the years and has prior convictions for robbery, felony assault, narcotics possession and motor vehicle theft.

In 2008, he pleaded no contest to second-degree sexual assault and was sentenced to 10 years, six months to serve.