A South Side father who allegedly posted a disturbing Facebook photo of his 22-month-old daughter bound and gagged "feels awful" about it but was only joking around, a relative said Wednesday.

Andre Curry, 21, faces up to seven years in prison if convicted of felony aggravated domestic battery. Cook County Circuit Judge Laura Sullivan ordered him held on $100,000 bond and barred him from contact with his daughter or other children. He was also restricted from using the Internet while the charge is pending.

A woman who answered the phone Wednesday at the family home and identified herself as Curry's grandmother said he loves his daughter and would never do anything to harm her.

"He's so playful, always laughing," said the woman, who would not give her name. "Everyone who knows him saw the photo and laughed, too … He was only joking."

She also said he knows what he did was a mistake and he "feels awful," especially now that the photo has gone viral on the Internet.

Curry, who has no criminal background, told police he was playing with his daughter earlier this month and used blue painters tape to bind her ankles and wrists and gag her mouth. He then snapped a photo of the little girl and uploaded it to his Facebook page, Assistant State's Attorney Erin Antonietti said.

Across the top of the photo were the words: "This is wut (sic) happens wen (sic) my baby hits me back," according to prosecutors and police reports. The message was followed with a winking emoticon.

Chicago police said they began investigating Dec. 14, after the photo was brought to their attention. The Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, which was brought into investigate the incident, said it had no prior contact with the family.

Curry's attorney, Anand Sundaram, said the child was never harmed or in danger. He said DCFS had already intervened, placed the girl with her mother and granted Curry supervised visitation. But DCFS declined to confirm those details.

"Unfortunately due to the Internet, this case has been blown out of proportion," said Sundaran, who unsuccessfully sought to have Curry released on electronic monitoring. A 2007 graduate of Chicago Vocational Career Academy, Curry works at an Applebee's, according to records.

jmeisner@tribune.com