Dad of child bride 'couldn't feel better'

A NSW father who will spend at least six years behind bars for arranging his young daughter's marriage says he 'couldn't feel better'.

The shadow of a child

A shadow of a child (AAP) Source: AAP

He's been jailed for at least six years for arranging his 12-year-old daughter's marriage and encouraging unprotected sex.

But the NSW father "couldn't feel better".

The 63-year-old was handed the sentence after being found guilty in April of procuring a child aged under 14 for unlawful sexual activity and being an accessory before the fact to a serious indictable offence.

"That this man thought his actions were justified by his religious faith does not excuse what he did," Judge Deborah Sweeney said during sentencing on Friday.

"(The father's) role was to protect his daughter."

The father, who can't be named, instructed his daughter not to use contraceptive pills or condoms with her 26-year-old husband after hosting her wedding at his NSW home in January last year.

Following the Islamic ceremony, the man and the girl went to a motel where they had sex.

A week later they stayed at the father's home.

A room the daughter shared with her younger sister was prepared for the couple and they had unprotected sex twice.

The next morning the father asked his daughter if she needed a shower before prayers, in line with Islamic practice after sexual intercourse.

The father had arranged for his daughter to meet her future husband after noticing she was developing a sexual interest in boys, Judge Sweeney said.

Marriage was the solution to saving her from the sin of premarital sex, the court heard.

The father believed she was old enough to make decisions about marriage as it was what the "creator" said.

Several months after the `wedding' the girl was taken to hospital with a sharp abdominal pain.

She was suffering from an ectopic pregnancy and miscarried.

Judge Sweeney told the Downing Centre District Court the father "lacks insight into his offending".

Outside court, the father's barrister Mario Licha was asked about his client's reaction to the sentence.

"His reply was `everything's perfect. He couldn't feel better'," Mr Licha told reporters.

The father will be eligible for parole in November 2020.

The girl's `husband', who also cannot be named, was in March sentenced to at least seven and a half years in jail for persistent sexual abuse between January 11 and February 5 last year.


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3 min read
Published 17 July 2015 4:04am
Updated 17 July 2015 8:00pm
Source: AAP

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