A Canton man accused of raping two juveniles in Albany was indicted by a grand jury Monday.
Richard L. Merryman, 20, was indicted on two counts of rape and one count of kidnapping. He was arrested April 2 and is being held on $500,000 bond at the Southeastern Ohio Regional Jail.
Merryman allegedly lured a five-year-old boy into a restroom stall at the Albany Community Center, secured the door, pulled down the child’s pants, touched the boy’s buttocks and performed oral sex on him, according to court documents.
He also allegedly raped a four-year-old boy at the center on the same day, said Athens County Assistant Prosecutor Keller Blackburn.
Since the victims were under the age of 10, Merryman could be sentenced to a minimum of 15 years in prison, if convicted at a trial, Blackburn said. Merryman also has the possibility of being sentenced to life without parole, he added.
Merryman has two previous charges, one of domestic violence and one of battery from Florida, and is a non-registered sex offender, Blackburn said.
He will be arraigned on the charges April 20 at 9 a.m.
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