Jeffrey Sackman, 44, has pleaded not guilty. In addition to the rape charges, Sackman is facing 13 other felonies.
The mother of the girl had alerted authorities about the relationship after the girl went missing last week. Authorities say she was found in Sackman's apartment when they went to investigate.
Police say Sackman posed as a 17-year-old Italian to meet girls on social networking sites. He paid for a bus ticket for the teen and promised he would help her get to Arizona to see her brother, police said.
When the teen met Sackman in Cathedral City, he allegedly gave her methamphetamine and sexually assaulted her several times over several days.
Sackman is being held on $1 million bail. The teen is back home with her mother.
