YOUNGSTOWN — David Merchant, 68, of East Philadelphia Avenue in Youngstown, pleaded guilty Wednesday to two counts of rape of a child and was sentenced to 15 years in prison.

He was indicted on four counts of rape involving a child under 10 between 2018 and 2021 at his home in Youngstown. Because of the age of the child, the charges carried a life prison sentence if convicted. The rapes were part of a “continuing course of conduct,” said Mahoning County Assistant Prosecutor Kevin Day.

Merchant accepted a plea agreement that called for eliminating one of the rape charges and reducing the three remaining charges to a lower level of rape that does not carry a life prison sentence in exchange for his guilty pleas. The 15 years was an agreed-upon recommendation by the prosecution and defense, meaning Merchant cannot appeal the sentence.

The U.S. Marshals Service arrested Merchant in August after he was secretly indicted by a Mahoning County grand jury Aug. 1.

Kevin Day, assistant county prosecutor, said the child is in the custody of Mahoning County Children Services, and personnel there agreed to the plea agreement because it would eliminate the need for the child to testify at trial. Day said CSB personnel also did not wish to have the child attend the plea and sentencing hearing for similar reasons.

Merchant is now a tier 3 sex offender, required to register his address in the place where he lives every 90 days for life if he gets out of prison.

His attorney, Nick Brevetta, said Merchant has a “very low IQ,” but Day said Merchant was evaluated and found competent to stand trial.

When Judge R. Scott Krihbaum asked Merchant if he had anything to say, he struggled. “I don’t know what to say.” After being told to speak up, he said, “I really feel bad about what happened, but it wasn’t supposed to be that way,” adding “I guess I got overwhelmed.”