A Russellville man is accused of sexually assaulting two girls younger than 11, the Pope County sheriff's office said.
Howard Stane, 44, faces four class B felony counts of second-degree sexual assault involving 8- and 10-year-old girls, court records show.
In an affidavit filed Wednesday in Pope County Circuit Court, the Pope County sheriff’s office said it received a report April 27 from the mother of an 8-year-old girl who said she found Stane in bed with her daughter.
After pulling back the bed covers, the mother told authorities that she saw Stane's groin area exposed, with the girl's hand on the area.
Speaking with an investigator, the 8-year-old girl said Stane made her inappropriately touch him on that occasion as well as in a separate occasion last summer.
The 10-year-old girl told the sheriff’s office that Stane had “done something wrong with her on more than one occasion" and that she was sexually assaulted by him numerous times since she was 9, the affidavit states.
According to the sheriff's office, the girl said that while asleep, Stane would put her hand on his groin area.
Stane is listed as a habitual offender who has previously been convicted of 13 felony offenses, according to the affidavit.
He is being held at the Pope County jail in lieu of $150,000 bond and is scheduled to appear for an arraignment hearing at 9 a.m. Monday, records show.