'What Dad did to me made me angry': Man jailed for sexually abusing daughter and niece

News
Crime

Author: Shannon Pitman,
Publish Date: Wed, 19 Aug 2026, 4:17pm

The man told his daughter everything would be all right and not to tell anyone. Photo / 123rf

WARNING: This article discusses sexual abuse and may be upsetting.

A man who climbed into his daughter’s bed in the early hours, violating the child he was meant to protect and leaving her unable to return to school, has been sentenced after his niece disclosed similar night‑time abuse.

“What Dad did to me made me angry ‘cause that’s my dad,” the victim said before he was jailed for more than 10 years.

The Northland man recently appeared for sentencing at Whangārei District Court charged with male rapes female, performing an indecent act on a girl and unlawful sexual connection.

The 15-year-old girl lived at home with her mother, father and siblings.

One weekend, her mother and siblings went to Auckland while she stayed home with her dad.

About 5.30am, the father went into her bedroom, climbed into her bed and raped her.

Throughout the incident, the girl was crying as he told her it would be all right and not to tell anyone.

Unknown to her, she was not the only child in the family he was sexually abusing.

The girl’s 12-year-old cousin often came to stay and reported to police the man sexually abused her repeatedly.

At times, she slept in the lounge with her cousins, where the man would get into bed next to her and sexually violate her.

To escape, the girl often used the excuse she needed to go to the bathroom.

On one occasion, while the girl was sleeping in the bedroom with her 15-year-old cousin, he climbed into her bed and sexually violated her.

She tried several times to turn and face her cousin but could not and eventually managed to leave the room by saying she needed to go to the bathroom.

Both girls reported the offending within weeks of each other and charges were laid in 2026, which the man admitted earlier this year.

At sentencing, Judge John McDonald read out the impact the victims suffered at the man’s hands.

“I dropped out of school ... it was too much at school. This has affected me, what Dad did to me made me angry ‘cause that’s my dad. I don’t know how to say what I’m feeling. I don’t think I will ever recover from this,” his daughter said in her victim impact statement.

“I can barely sleep most nights, I just feel like someone is around. Flashbacks - it has made me angry. If he was standing in front of me right now I would tell him I hate him,” the niece said.

The man told pre-sentence report writers he denied the offending, but his lawyer David Reece said that was a misstatement and he accepted what had happened and maintained his guilty plea.

Crown lawyer Danica Soich told the court a minimum period of imprisonment must apply given the man had raped his biological daughter.

Judge McDonald told the court the man’s degree of violation was moderate but the breach of trust was high, given the victims’ ages and vulnerability.

“You were entrusted with the care of your niece in your home and you have breached so many family members’ breach of trust,” the judge said.

The man was sentenced to 10 years and four months’ prison and will be required to serve half his sentence before going before the Parole Board.

He was automatically added to the child sex offender register and given a first strike warning.

SEXUAL HARM

Where to get help:
If it's an emergency and you feel that you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
If you've ever experienced sexual assault or abuse and need to talk to someone, contact Safe to Talk confidentially, any time 24/7:
• Call 0800 044 334
• Text 4334
• Email support@safetotalk.nz
• For more info or to web chat visit safetotalk.nz
Alternatively contact your local police station - click here for a list.
If you have been sexually assaulted, remember it's not your fault.

Shannon Pitman is a Whangārei-based reporter for Open Justice covering courts in the Te Tai Tokerau region. She is of Ngāpuhi/Ngāti Pūkenga descent and has worked in digital media for the past five years. She joined NZME in 2023.