WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Police said a registered sex offender is accused of raping a 10-year-old child in West Palm Beach multiple times.
The probable cause affidavit states investigators learned about the case after the victim told a school guidance counselor on Jan. 10, 2019.
The suspect, Ronnie Dryden, 28, of Davie, Florida, is charged in the case.
The child said sexual abuse first occurred at the age of 9 years old and said, “I love you shorty.”
The affidavit said a sibling of the victim saw Dryden in the child’s bedroom together on multiple occasions. The sibling said they told the victim’s mother about the abuse, but she did not believe them, and Dryden denied the allegations.
Police said a medical evaluation of the victim had positive findings for sexual abuse.
Dryden was also arrested for failure to register as a sexual offender during the initial investigation as a separate case.
He faces sexual battery on a child under the age of 12.