‘Head to toe in Betadine’: trial of grandfather charged with 7 child sex offences enters second day

The Gympie grandfather declined to give evidence on Day 2 of his trial, but the court heard from the mothers of the two girls he allegedly raped and molested

The two mothers of the girls allegedly raped and molested by a Gympie region grandfather gave evidence in the Gympie District Court on Wednesday. Picture: iStock.

The two mothers of the girls allegedly raped and molested by a Gympie region grandfather gave evidence in the Gympie District Court on Wednesday.

The 61-year-old man, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is on trial for seven alleged offences, including two counts of rape and five counts of indecent treatment of a child under 16 in his care.

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First to testify was the mother of the second victim, who told the court she was first made aware of the alleged sexual assaults after a conversation in 2018 with her daughter, two years after the alleged incident.

Crown Prosecutor Stephanie Gallagher asked the mother if she had asked her daughter if the 61-year-old man had done anything to her, which implied to be anything of a sexual nature.

The mother replied yes, which prompted Ms Gallagher to ask if her daughter said something had happened to her, but did not want to discuss it with her mother and gave no further details.

Once again, she replied yes, and said that conversation prompted her to take her daughter to the Gympie police station.

Gympie District Court generic.

Second to testify was the mother of the first victim, who was also first made aware of the alleged sexual assaults following a conversation with her daughter’s friend in 2018, whom her daughter had confided in.

She also told the court the 61-year-old defendant had dropped her daughter home the same day of an alleged incident where he touched her inappropriately.

She said she had even had a discussion with him after she had noticed her daughter had Betadine on her.

“(The defendant) explained to me that ... she was playing with the other kids and mucking around on a bike,” she said.

On Tuesday, Ms Gallagher told the court of an alleged incident where one of the alleged victims had fallen off a bike and the defendant had tended to her by putting Betadine where she had grazed her skin.

It was alleged that at this time, the grandfather had used the opportunity to inappropriately touch the young girl.

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After being made aware of the alleged incidents, the mother also took her daughter to the Gympie police station.

Defence lawyer Jason Todman told the court at one point there was a heated conversation between the mother and the defendant, where the defendant threatened to go to the department of child safety in regards to an alleged relationship between the mother and a man while his granddaughter was present at her house.

She denied these claims, and said there was a heated exchange, but there were no threats made and no relationship as she was ‘a married woman’.

The 61-year-old defendant was also asked if he wanted to give evidence, which he denied.

The trial continues in Gympie District Court on Thursday, May 6.

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Originally published as ‘Head to toe in Betadine’: trial of grandfather charged with 7 child sex offences enters second day