Man jailed for abuse of daughter he prostituted

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/man-jailed-for-abuse-of-daughter-he-prostituted-20100608-xtox.html

June 9, 2010

WHEN she was nine years old, her father began his abuse of his daughter by taking photos of her while she wore underwear and as she showered.

When she was 11, he began touching her and verbally abusing her. At 13, she was raped by a boarder at her mother's house. When the daughter, who had a mild intellectual disability, told her father, he repeatedly molested her and bribed her with cash each time.

When she was 16, her father told her that if she wanted to make ''some quick cash'', she should have sex with his truckie mates; he twice filmed it and once said: ''I think I'll have go.''

The Kilmore father, now 58, was yesterday jailed for 13 years after pleading guilty to six counts, including two of incest and one of maintaining a sexual relationship with a child under 16.

The man, who cannot be identified to protect his now 26-year-old daughter's identity, had grossly breached the trust of his daughter, who was especially vulnerable ''because of her desire to be loved by you'', a Victorian County Court judge said yesterday.

''The harm caused to her is profound and seriously eroded her prospects of a normal life,'' the judge said in sentencing.

In a recorded conversation between the daughter and the father, the daughter asked why he had abused her. The father replied that he had done it to help his daughter and ''it was good money''.

In her victim impact statement, the daughter told of becoming angry, her difficulty forming relationships and of her frequent suicidal thoughts.

She was able to stand up to her father when, at 21, she had a daughter, which made her more assertive and the abuse ended, the court heard at a plea hearing in March.

The judge yesterday said the father's offending was premeditated and deliberate, and his behaviour had a corrupting influence on his daughter.

The judge rejected the man's mitigation that he abused his daughter because he had been a victim of sexual abuse from his mother.

''There is no real explanation for your behaviour other than that you were prepared to sexually exploit a vulnerable young person for your own sexual gratification,'' the judge said.

The father denied to police that the abuse occurred and told officers that his daughter made up the allegations because ''she needed attention'' and because he had refused to let her stay with him.

The father will be eligible for release in nine years and will be a registered sex offender for life.

The judge said the father would be at risk of reoffending if he did not participate in sexual offence courses.

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