A Korean man who molested his underage daughter on multiple occasions was sentenced to eight years in prison by a high court Wednesday.

The 45-year-old man surnamed Kim, had custody of his daughter after his divorce in 2010.

When she was 10 years old, Kim took his daughter to the bathroom to wash together where he made her touch his private parts and perform sexual acts, according to court reports.

His abuse continued for five years until August 2015. 

Daejeon High Court said, “A father who is responsible for nurturing his child, has instead channeled his distorted sexual desire on his daughter whose sexual identity was not fully formed.”

“The child, maltreated by her own father, will have to endure painful memories.”

In the first court trial, Kim was handed down eight years in prison with 80 hours of rehabilitation program.

Kim appealed for a retrial, claiming the penalty was too heavy on grounds that he was under the influence of alcohol during his acts, and was unable to make the right decision. 

The appeals court dismissed his claim for lack of evidence.

By Lim Jeong-yeo (kaylalim@heraldcorp.com)