A 37-year-old Enumclaw man, Ryan Rothermel, was arrested May 14 and charged with three counts of third-degree rape of a child by the King County Prosecutor’s Office.

Bail was set at $150,000 during a King County Superior Court hearing May 15.

Rothermel is scheduled for an arraignment at 9 a.m. June 1 at the Kent Regional Justice Center.

After an extensive investigation spanning several months, Enumclaw police officers and detectives served a search warrant on Rothermel’s residence May 14. Rothermel was arrested and booked for having sexual relations with a 14-year-old girl who was living in the residence where Rothermel lived with his girlfriend. The girlfriend owns the residence and rented a space to the mother of the victim.

The Washington State Patrol crime lab came to the scene and spent the day collecting evidence from 16 areas in the residence.

According to a probable cause document issued by the King County Prosecutor’s Office, the police first received a tip from a man who overheard Rothermel telling people he was having sex with a minor female. The man told police “Rothermel was almost gloating….”

Police began an investigation, which led to the arrest.

When Rothermel was first interviewed by detectives he said his relationship with the girl was that of a “father like figure.”

After Rothermel was in custody he told the detectives he did not know how old the girl was when she first moved into the residence in April 2014. He stated he learned she was 14 a few months later. Court documents show he admitted to having relations with the girl.

The probable cause document noted Rothermel has a history of sexual deviance  including attempted voyeurism with sexual motivation. His criminal convictions include fourth-degree assault, second-degree criminal trespass, resisting arrest and two counts of domestic violence/court order violation.

Third-degree rape of a child is a class C felony. The Revised Code of Washington sentence for a class C felony is confinement in a state correctional institution for five years, or by a fine in an amount fixed by the court of $10,000, or by both confinement and fine.