Ryan Allan Rothermel entered guilty pleas Friday to three counts of third-degree child rape.

The 37-year-old Enumclaw resident is scheduled to be sentenced at 1 p.m. April 8 in Courtroom 4A at the Regional Justice Center in Kent.

Rothermel was arrested May 14, 2015, and charged with having intimate relations with a 14-year-old girl. The girl was living in the same residence where Rothermel lived with his girlfriend.

Rothermel was arrested after an extensive investigation by the Enumclaw Police Department that began in February 2015.

According to the charging documents the case was opened when a man reported to police he overheard Rothermel, “tell people he was having (relations) with a minor female that lived at his residence. (The man stated) Rothermel was almost gloating that he was having (relations) with such a young girl.”

The officers interviewed the girl, her mother and Rothermel’s girlfriend multiple times. The mother reported to police during an interview Rothermel displayed inappropriate behavior to her. She also showed officers Facebook posts between the girl and Rothermel that indicated an intimate relationship.

During Rothermel’s first interview with officers he denied having an inappropriate relationship with the girl. The officers noted all the Facebook messages between Rothermel and the girl appeared to have been deleted. When asked if he deleted the messages, “Rothermel paused and said he did not know, and then said he should have messages on there from her.” When asked if he would give consent to allow access to the deleted Facebook posts Rothermel said no and requested to speak to an attorney.

In May the victim’s mother reported the girl was ready to talk about the relationship between her and Rothermel.

Following an interview, a search warrant was served on the residence and Rothermel was arrested. After his arrest he admitted having an intimate relationship with the girl, stating he was in love with her and her age did not matter to him because they had so much in common.

The charging documents noted he told the girl he would kill himself if anyone found out about their relationship.

According to the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, the sentencing range for third-degree rape of a child is 46 to 60 months. The prosecution and defense are both recommending 46 months – three years, 10 months – incarceration followed by sexual deviancy treatment and other standard conditions upon release.

Rothermel is incarcerated at the Kent Regional Justice Center where he has been held since his arrest.