Kingaroy District Court: Man faces trial over alleged rape, indecent treatment of 5yo granddaughter

A South Burnett man denies allegations he watched pornography beside his granddaughter before sexually assaulting the young girl while her mother was asleep in the next room. FULL REPORT HERE:

The trial for a man charged with raping his five-year-old granddaughter while the girl’s mother was asleep in the same house has begun this week in Kingaroy District Court.

The 56-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, pleaded not guilty to two counts of indecent treatment of a child under 16 and one count of rape.

Crown prosecutor Hamish McIntyre told the court the man offered to care for his alleged victim one day in February, 2020, while the girl’s mother took a nap.

He said the man allegedly watched graphic pornography while the five-year-old was in the same room, before sexually assaulting her.

Mr McIntyre said the girl had claimed she felt like she was going to “choke and vomit” during the alleged rape.

The Kingaroy court heard the alleged offending was brought to light when the five-year-old ran up to her mother and said, “Guess what Poppy did?”

The child’s mother and aunt both gave evidence during the first day of proceedings, saying they were both living with the South Burnett man at the time.

The girl’s aunt confirmed during cross-examination that the man suffered from epilepsy, and as a result was typically “reluctant to look after children on his own”.

The alleged victim and a police officer are expected to give evidence in coming days.

Proceedings continue in the Kingaroy District Court this week.