Dalby man found guilty of raping his own daughter four times

A girl raped from the age of five lived in fear for years because of what her own father had done and the threats he made to her and her mother. WARNING DISTRESSING CONTENT

A Dalby man has been found guilty at trial for multiple child sex offences.

A man who sexually assaulted his daughter “destroyed” the girl’s childhood, a court has heard.

The Dalby man was found guilty of raping his daughter on four separate occasions between the years of 2017 and 2021 after a three-day trial in Dalby District Court.

A man who cannot be named to protect the identity of the complainant pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to four counts of rape and one count of the indecent treatment of a child under 12 who is also his lineal descendant.

Crown prosecutor Sam Poplawski alleged that between late 2017 and early 2021 the man assaulted the child on four separate occasions when she was between the ages of five and nine.

The complainant would then later tell a family friend what had happened on April 23 2021 after the man and her mother had split in 2020.

On February 10 2023 the court was told police attended the home to take a statement from the complaint at which point she told them “her dad had done bad things to her” confirming the same story she had told to the mother, remembering key dates, locations and the order of how things occurred.

After about an hour of deliberations, the jury returned guilty verdicts on all charges.

During the sentence hearing a victim impact statement from the complainant's mother was read by the prosecutor in which she said he had “taken his daughter’s innocence and inflicted horrendous things on her little body and mind”.

She further said that her daughter would require extensive therapy going forward and he had “destroyed her childhood”.

When sentencing Judge Benedict Power KC took into account the man’s extensive five page criminal history which included numerous assaults and drug charges as well as his clear lack of remorse.

He also drew references to previous cases of child abuse, but said due to the victim being his own biological daughter he would sentence him at the highest threshold possible.

“You are her father and were in a position of power, she placed her trust in you and you abused that, she lived in fear for years because of what you had done and the threats you made to her and her mother,” Judge Power said.

Several members of the jury returned to court and sat in the public gallery to hear the sentence.

He was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment without parole.

As the sentence was read out the man showed little emotions simply raising his wrists to a police officer who cuffed him and escorted him from the court.