Father’s sins told to court

Man had sex with young daughters

THE case of a man who maintained sexual relationships with his adoptive and biological daughters is a serious example of sexual misconduct, the Supreme Court in Hobart has heard.

The southern Tasmanian man had pleaded guilty to a raft of charges, including maintaining a sexual relationship with someone under 17.

Crown prosecutor Jackie Hartnett said yesterday the man was married in 1999 and adopted his new wife’s daughter before they went on to have a daughter and son of their own.

The court heard the mother often had to go away for work trips and the man, who did not work, would look after the children.

The sexual abuse occurred when the girls were between the ages of nine and 16 and the man was in his 30s and 40s.

Ms Hartnett said the relationship with his adopted daughter started out well, but began to sour, and he became physically and sexually abusive. The abuse continued until she moved out of home in 2009.

The man then began a sexual relationship with his biological daughter, who was aged about nine at the time.

Ms Hartnett said the abuse would occur almost every night that her mother was away on a work trip. The mother was not aware of the abuse until the daughter told her in October 2017.

The court heard Tasmania Police found an email on his computer to a media organisation in which he said about his adoptive daughter “she was very grown up and I was bored”.

The man was arrested and charged in December 2017 and has been remanded in custody since.

Ms Hartnett said it was a serious example of sexual misconduct, with aggravating factors including the length of time over which the abuse occurred and the breach of trust of a parental figure.

Defence lawyer Alan Hensley said the man had lived in Papua New Guinea from age four to seven and had been sexually abused by an employee of the family. He said he was also sexually abused by a scout master at age 12 in Tasmania.

Justice Michael Brett adjourned the case until April 17.