A former coach for a North Whidbey soccer club will be going to prison for repeatedly raping a teenaged player.

Jeovanni Camacho, Jr., a 34-year-old Oak Harbor resident, pleaded guilty in Island County Superior Court Sept. 28 to three counts of child rape in the third degree.

Under the terms of the plea bargain, Chief Criminal Prosecutor Colleen Kenimond will recommend that Camacho be sent to prison for three years and ten months, which is the bottom of the standard sentencing range.

The Department of Corrections has to complete a pre-sentence investigation before the sentencing hearing. If Camacho doesn’t agree with the recommendation in the report, Kenimond said she will recommend a five-year sentence.

Camacho was a soccer coach in 2006 when he started sexually assaulting a female player, beginning when she was just 14 years old. The victim said that she and Camacho had sexual intercourse numerous times from March 2006 until May 2007.

Camacho first molested the girl when he was invited over to the house by her parents, court papers indicate. Sometimes he would sneak into the girl’s basement bedroom at night, unbeknownst to her parents.

In September of 2006, the girl’s parents and therapist attempted to stop the contact between her and Camacho, but he bought her a cell phone to stay in touch. He continued to sneak into her bedroom, court documents state.

The police state that the girl was initially reluctant to talk to police about the abuse, but she realized the inappropriateness of Camacho’s behavior after going through in-patient treatment.