Dad accused of raping daughter for 30 years, keeping her a prisoner (Victoria, Australia)

UNNAMED DAD is charged with raping his daughter almost daily for 30 years, keeping her a virtual prisoner, and fathering 4 children with her. Once again, the authorities missed all the red flags.

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,27574,26084812-421,00.html

Victorian man 'fathered four children with daughter'
By Padraic Murphy
Herald Sun
September 17, 2009 12:01am

Man allegedly raped daughter for 30 years
Fathered four children to her
Case "could be worse than Fritzl"
Herald Sun: Mother 'never suspected'
Herald Sun: Neighbour 'not my business'

A VICTORIAN man who allegedly raped his daughter almost daily for 30 years, kept her as a virtual prisoner and fathered her four children, has been charged by police.

In what has been described as a case as shocking as Josef Fritzl's in Austria, child welfare advocates have called for a full inquiry amid claims authorities failed to investigate the alleged abuse despite being warned decades ago, the Herald Sun reports.

One source close to the case claimed it could be "every bit as bad, if not worse, than the Josef Fritzl case. Especially the fact that she had so many children to her father".

The Herald Sun has also spoken to neighbours of the family, who said they had suspicions of abuse but did not go to the authorities because they did not want to cause trouble.

The victim's mother claims to have been unaware of any abuse, despite sharing a house with her daughter, husband and grandchildren until 2005.

All four children were born with health problems in major Melbourne hospitals. None have fathers listed on their birth certificates, raising concerns about why questions were not asked at the time. One of the children died from severe developmental problems soon after birth.

The woman and her three surviving children are in a safe house, being cared for by authorities.

The man was charged in February, after his alleged victim approached police - three years after she first alerted officers but said she did not want them to act because she feared for her safety.

The man denied raping his daughter, but was charged after DNA tests allegedly showed he was the father of her children. He will appear in court in November.

It is understood the family has been known to authorities for more than 30 years. Three of the man's children with his wife died - two of cot death and another drowned.

The surviving children are understood to have spent periods in care.

It is claimed the man allegedly threatened his daughter with violence against her mother and siblings while he raped her at a variety of properties in Melbourne and country Victoria.

The alleged rapes are said to have begun when the victim was aged about 11 in the 1970s and continued until 2007.

Police have known about the alleged abuse since 2005, when the woman came forward, but were powerless to act because she said she did not want to co-operate with police because she was scared of her father.

Details of the case come after Premier John Brumby last night hosted crisis talks to fix the child protection system after a scathing report by the Ombudsman.