A man admitted to molesting his young daughter while massaging her in the master bedroom of his flat in court on Monday.

The 47-year-old accused was a driving instructor at the time of the incident some seven years ago, back in 2007, when he used his hands to squeeze the breasts of his daughter, then aged between 10 and 11. The man cannot be named, so as to protect the victim.

The court heard on Monday that the victim had been diagnosed with scoliosis, a medical condition affecting the spine, since primary school. A traditional Chinese medicine doctor recommended massages as part of her treatment.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Yvonne Poon said the accused would sometimes massage the victim with the bedroom door open, and at times, close and lock the bedroom door.

The victim also noticed that her father would massage her with her clothes on when her mother was at home but would ask her to remove them if the massages took place when her mother was not at home.

In 2007 when she was around 11, the accused told her that he wanted to massage her spine. No one was at home then. She followed him to the master bedroom and he locked the door. He told her to remove her shirt and lie face down on the bed. He then massaged her, lifting up her bra as he did so.

After he had finished, he told her to sit up and molested her. He then told her to remove her shorts and panties, turn around and he further touched her.

After a while, he told her to put her clothes on and let her leave the room. She was at a loss as to what to do and did not tell anyone.

The offence came to light only in late 2010 after she confided in a teacher who had noticed that the victim was showing suicidal tendencies and self-injuring. The victim made a police report on Nov 26 that year. It is not known why the case is heard only now. Sentencing was postponed to March 26. The father could be jailed for up to two years, fined caned or received any two of the punishments.