Rural Reasnor man pleads guilty in sexual abuse cases

A rural Reasnor man charged with multiple sex offenses in incidents involving three young girls has pleaded guilty to two counts of indecent contact with a child and one count of indecent exposure. Richard Eugene VanManen is scheduled to appear in Jasper County District Court to be sentenced at 9:30 a.m. June 2. The 61-year-old initially was arrested last June for lascivious acts with a child and indecent exposure in connection with incidents reported to have occurred some time within that previous year. According to court documents, a 10-year-old girl told authorities VanManen had pulled down her pants and touched her inappropriately under the guise of playing games. She also said she and VanManen had played “dress up” and that he had exposed himself to her. Then last July, a 9-year-old female victim came forward, stating that while staying overnight at VanManen’s home at 8185 E. 56th St. S. in rural Reasnor he had touched her inappropriately. VanManen was charged with indecent contact with a child in connection with that incident, and a second-degree sexual abuse charge was filed in the same case a few months later. VanManen was further charged with four counts of second-degree sexual abuse when a third victim, an 8-year-old female, reported experiencing similar incidents with VanManen throughout her life in his basement and barn. Last week VanManen pleaded guilty to indecent exposure in the case involving the 10-year-old female and to two counts of indecent contact with a child in connection with each of the July 2007 cases. VanManen is free on bond and awaiting his sentencing. Indecent contact with a child is an aggravated misdemeanor punishable by a maximum two years in prison and a $5,000 fine. Indecent exposure is a serious misdemeanor punishable by no more than one year in jail and a $1,500 fine.