POMEROY — A Pomeroy man is facing six felony charges, including the rape of a person under the age of 13.

Henry Ray Buchanan, 43, of Pomeroy, was indicted by the Meigs County Grand Jury in mid-December on one count of rape and five counts of gross sexual imposition.

According to Meigs County Prosecutor Colleen Williams, there are allegedly two female victims under the age of 10, neither of whom are related to the accused.

Williams said that the Pomeroy Police Department handled the investigation into the case prior to it being presented to the grand jury in December.

The indictment alleges, from July 2012 to Dec. 14, 2012, Buchanan engaged in sexual conduct with a person less that 13 years of age; it does not matter whether or not he knew the age of the person. Rape, as charged, is a felony of the first degree. The maximum sentence for a first degree felony is 11 years in prison.

The final five counts of the indictment allege that between July and Dec. 14, 2012, Buchanan did have sexual conduct with another, not the spouse of the offender, when the person was less than 13 years of age, whether or not the offender knew the age of that person.

Gross sexual imposition is a felony of the third degree. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 60 months (five years) in prison. Buchanan could face a maximum sentence of 36 years in prison if convicted on all charges.

Buchanan was arraigned on the charges Dec. 21, 2012, in Meigs County Common Pleas Court. A not guilty plea was entered to all of the charges in the indictment.

Herman Carson from the Ohio Public Defenders Office was appointed to represent Buchanan in the case.

Bond was set at $500,000 with 10 percent cash permitted. Buchanan was remanded to the custody of the Meigs County Sheriff’s Office. Buchanan is currently being held in the Middleport Jail.

A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 10:15 a.m. on Feb. 25 with a trial date set for March 12.

Williams said that cases of this type are not as frequent in the county over the past few years. She stated that there were a few more cases earlier in her first term as prosecutor, but the number has decreased since that time.