New charges of rape and abuse have been brought against Vineyard Haven resident Peter Duart, who was indicted by a grand jury last month for sexual assault on a mentally challenged person.

Mr. Duart, 42, was arraigned in Edgartown district court on Friday on charges of rape and indecent assault. He has been held in the Dukes County Jail since March following his arrest on charges of rape and indecent assault and battery on a retarded person. The term retarded is used in the criminal statute.

Mr. Duart was a registered level two sex offender at the time of his arrest, stemming from a 2004 conviction on charges of rape and indecent assault and battery, for which he served two years in state prison. He is a former assistant coach on the regional high school football team and member of the Tisbury planning board.

He was apprehended by state police in Dartmouth on March 17 after Oak Bluffs police took out a warrant for his arrest. After initially trying to flee from police, he was caught with a large sum of cash and his passport. The case was moved to Dukes County Superior Court when he was indicted by a grand jury.

The new charges against Mr. Duart followed an investigation by Oak Bluffs police that began when a female victim contacted police after learning of his arrest earlier this year.

At the arraignment last Friday, Cape and Islands assistant district attorney Laura Marshard said the victim in the new criminal charges is handicapped.

“Mr. Duart is charged with rape of a woman who relied on a wheelchair for transportation,” she said.

Ms. Marshard asked Judge Lance Garth to set bail at $50,000, in addition to the $50,000 set in March.

But defense attorney Charles Morano argued the current bail was sufficient.

“My client is a member of a very well known Island family; his mother and his two sisters live here . . . in that sense he should not be considered a flight risk,” he said. Judge Garth set bail at $20,000.

Mr. Duart is next due in district court on May 17.