A 43-year-old Port Orchard man was arrested March 22 by Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office deputies for allegedly raping and sexually abusing his 13-year-old daughter, who is developmentally delayed, for the last year.

In a supplemental statement of probable cause filed March 25 by Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Kelly Montgomery in Kitsap County Superior Court, the man was arrested without incident at his residence after sheriff’s deputies arrived with a search warrant.

The man was charged in court with second-degree rape of a child, with a special allegation of domestic violence against a family or household member. He also was charged with second-degree child molestation, with a special allegation of domestic violence. He is being held on $100,000 bail.

The maximum penalty for child rape in the second degree is life imprisonment and/or a $50,000 fine. He also could face a maximum of 10 years behind bars and/or a fine of $20,000 for his charge of child molestation.

The man’s arrest was preceded by a March 22 visit to Marcus Whitman Middle School in Port Orchard, where a sheriff’s deputy spoke with a school counselor, who reported the man’s daughter told him she didn’t want to return home because her father “has been touching her breasts and pubic area for the past year,” the probable cause statement reported.

According to the statement, the victim is at a second- and third-grade school level and is on an IEP, or an individual education plan, at Whitman.

When a deputy interviewed the girl, she confirmed that after she had touched the man’s private parts, he would give her items as rewards, including treats. The deputy transported the girl to the special assault unit, where she was interviewed by a forensic child interviewer.