MHPD arrests convicted sex offender on 12 counts of rape involving 14-year-old

The Mountain Home Police Department arrested 24-year-old Isaiah Bell on 12 counts of rape involving a 14-year-old girl on Wednesday, Sept. 18.

Bell had previously served time on charges of lewd conduct with a child under 16 in Bannock County in 2015. In that case he was sentenced to three to ten years in prison. He was also ordered to register as a sex offender in that case. Bell was paroled in April of 2018 and according to records he stopped making contact with his parole officer in August of 2019, and failed to register as a sex offender. When he was arrested in Mountain Home he was considered a fugitive by the Idaho Department of Corrections and there was a warrant for his arrest out of Bannock county for his failure to register and a parole violation. Bond in that case is currently set at $20,000.

In another case in March of 2015, also out of Bannock County, Bell had been charged with forcible rape, but that case was dismissed on a motion made by the prosecutor.

In the Mountain Home case the police department had received a report of his contact with the minor child and began an investigation. The charges state that he allegedly had sexual contact with the child 12 times between June and his arrest on Wednesday.

During his arraignment on Sept. 19, the state requested a $300,000 bond, Judge Theodore Fleming chose to impose a $500,000 bond and issued a no contact order between the defendant and the victim. Public Defender Terry Ratliff, did not argue the bond amount.

A preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 26 at 4 p.m.

If convicted, Bell could face life in prison.