A 52-year-old man on Tuesday was charged with groping his 12-year-old daughter and harassing her.

Inspector Joseph Busuttil informed the court that the girl had contacted the Domestic Violence Unit to report that her father, whose name is not being published by court order, had been doing things to her, including touching her inappropriately, for the past year.

The girl’s mother on occasion also told the defendant to stop groping the young girl’s chest and buttocks, he said.

When the police asked him about this, he told them that he had just been “joking” with his daughter and meant nothing. Inspector Busuttil told the court, presided by Magistrate Joe Mifsud, that the girl had also opened up to a school counsellor about this.

The man was charged with performing acts of a sexual nature without consent on the child and harassing her.

He pleaded not guilty. No request for bail was made.

Lawyer Brandon Kirk Muscat was Legal Aid defence counsel.

Inspectors Joseph Busuttil and Doriette Cuschieri prosecuted, assisted by Lawyers Sean Gabriel Azzopardi and Danika M. Vella from the Attorney General's Office.