Townsville Child Protection Unit charge step dad with rape, assault offences

The lives of two sisters will forever be scarred after a man meant to protect them instead allegedly abused, violated and even raped one of them as a young girl

THE LIVES of two sisters will forever be scarred after a man meant to protect them instead allegedly abused, violated and even raped one of them as a young girl

The two years of horrific abuse started in 2016 when one North Queensland sister was just 10 years old.

The sisters and their mother had moved in with their stepfather, who cannot be named to protect the victims, when he allegedly started to assault them both.

For one of the sisters, police will allege it quickly led to indecent treatment, and then to rape, while the girls were aged between 10 and 16 years old.

It only stopped when the girls’ mother came forward to police in 2018, who was also allegedly subjected to 15 years of severe domestic violence by the man who claimed he loved her.

Police will allege the mother was repeatedly assaulted, raped, and threatened from 2003 until 2018.

Police will allege the 46-year-old man would hit the mother and force her to have sex with him when she refused to obey his demands.

An investigation by Townsville Child Protection and Investigation Unit resulted in police laying more than 70 charges of rape, assault and threatening violence on the man.

These charges include 30 counts of rape and 30 counts of assault for alleged offences against the mother, as well as one count of rape, two counts of indecent treatment and assault against one of the sisters, and a single count of assault on the other sister.

Officer-in-charge Detective Senior Sergeant Dave Miles said it was a significant example of domestic violence at its worst.

“It’s also significant in the fact that we have a victim who has been prepared to speak openly about the offences,” he said.

“We have a zero tolerance in relation to domestic violence, irrespective of the level of offending, but certainly where an assault then leads into a forced sexual activity … it’s quite significant in terms of the law.”

The man faced court earlier this month on the offences against his partner, but was kept in custody.

Detectives charged him with seven fresh offences, most relating to the alleged abuse against the children, on Friday afternoon.

He will face court again in November.

Originally published as Townsville Child Protection Unit charge step dad with rape, assault offences