Man accused of raping teenage daughter for 5 years

Police question the 17-year-old girl who accused her father of raping her over a period of 5 years. (Photo by Pratuan Kajonvuthinun)

SAKON NAKHON: A man has been arrested on charges of assaulting and repeatedly raping his own daughter over a period of 5 years with the consent of her mother, after an aunt and two kind women intervened.

The girl, now 17, was rescued by her aunt and two other women, sisters, who took pity on the girl. The victim’s plight drew sympathy from netizens after her story was posted on Facebook.

The victim was allegedly repeatedly raped by her father, now aged 39, since she was 12 with the consent of her mother. The family lived in a ramshackle house in Muang district of Sakon Nakhon.

The girl eventually sought help from her aunt, who is her father’s younger sister, according to a post by Chalita Wattana on her Facebook page.

The man had gone to his sister’s house to take his daughter back. While there he assaulted the girl, prompting his sister to call police. He was detained and taken to Muang police station, Ms Chalita said.

Ms Chalita and her elder sister helped the victim.

In an interview with the Bangkok Post, Chalita, 37, said she learned about the girl’s plight from a Facebook friend. She and her elder sister Phattanan Tha-ngern, 39, immediately contacted the girl’s aunt, who was trying to get her niece away from the father.

Ms Chalita and Ms Phattanan took the girl to file a complaint with local police. The girl was later taken to a hospital for a medical examination.

The 37-year-old woman said the girl had escaped from her parents' makeshift home on the night of Sept 20 and sought help from her aunt.

Initially, the aunt did not believe that her elder brother would rape his own child. But after the father came to her house and assaulted his daughter, she called police to press assault charges against him.

Police were awaiting the results of the health examination before deciding whether to lay the rape charges. The results would be available in about two months, Ms Chalita said. Initial results showed the girl had been raped, she added,

The man was being detained in a cell at Sakon Nakhon provincial court on assault charges. His wife had tried to get bail for him and was angry with her daughter for laying a complaint against him. The bail application was denied.