A 50-year-old man has been condemned to a suspended jail term after he admitted to defiling a 13-year-old girl, although he insisted that she had provoked him.

The man was accused of defiling the girl and participation in sexual acts.

He told the court during the proceedings that the girl - his partner's daughter - had provoked him when she jumped out from behind a curtain and placed his hand on her breast. She also tried to grope him and kiss him but he pushed her off. Matters, he said, stopped there.

The alleged victim's mother explained that she has been in a relationship with the accused for 10 years and they had a son. He also helped her raise her children from her previous marriage, including the victim.

Her daughter, she said, used to live with them, but caused them many problems, despite knowing that the accused had helped her kick her drug habit. Her former husband also had drug problems.

Following a number of police searches in their residence, the accused decided it would be better for the daughter to start living in an institute.

The mother said her daughter had lied about her and caused trouble with her mother (the grandmother). The daughter rebelled whenever a level of discipline was exercised.

Once, when she visited her at the institute, the daughter made her claims about the accused. The mother said she immediately confronted her partner and he told her that the daughter had 'driven him craz'y  but he had not said anything so as not to undermine the bond which the mother was trying to forge with her daughter. 

She said that her partner was a shy and quiet person with whom she never had any problems.

The woman also said that her daughter's father had wanted money from the accused and had said he was ready to bring the proceedings to a stop.

She said her daughter had confirmed, in the presence of a social worker, that she had been the one harassing the accused.

A probation officer told the court that the accused had fully cooperated with him. The probation officer suggested that in this case, a suspended sentence and a supervision order were appropriate.

The court said that in view of the admission of the accused and the testimony of the probation officer, it was condemning the accused to  a two-year jail term suspended for three years. The accused was placed under a supervision order. He was warned that he could not be in the same house as the victim and could not communicate with her.