The self-employed man pleaded guilty after the charge was read before Muar sessions court judge Sayani Nor, Harian Metro reported.

He was charged with sexually communicating with his 14-year-old daughter, his only child, at a house in Batu Pahat, Johor, at around 4pm on June 16.

The charge was framed under Section 11(1)(a) of the Sexual Offences Against Children Act 2017, punishable by a maximum three years in jail upon conviction.

The charge was also read with Section 16 of the same Act, which provided for an additional sentence of up to five years and two strokes of the rotan due to the relationship of trust between him and the victim.

Deputy public prosecutor Diyana Najihah Fauzi prosecuted while the man was unrepresented.

According to the case facts, the victim contacted her aunt earlier this month to express fears that her father might act inappropriately towards her.

On the day of the incident, the girl had rejected her father’s advances and left his bedroom. The aunt then asked one of her children to pick the girl up from the house.