MOSCOW, September 17 (RIA Novosti) - A man in Australia has been charged with multiple counts of rape and incest allegedly committed against his daughter over three decades, the Age newspaper reported on Thursday.

Australian media have compared the man, who has not been named, with Austrian Josef Fritzl, who was sentenced to life in prison for imprisoning his daughter for 24 years, repeatedly raping her and fathering seven children with her.

The man lived with his wife and daughter in a town in Australia's southeastern state of Victoria and was arrested in February after his daughter spoke to police last year, the paper said.

Police say DNA tests prove that the man is the father of his daughter's four children, all of whom reportedly had birth defects and one of which has since died. The woman and the three remaining children have been taken to a safe house.

According to the newspaper, the man, who is due to appear in a Melbourne court in November, now faces 13 charges, including five of incest, five of rape, two of indecently assaulting a girl under the age of 16 and one of assault. The man was initially charged with 83 offences, the Age said.

"This is a terrible sickening case that is before the courts and I'm confident that both the court proceedings and the investigation by the Child Safety Commissioner will help get to the bottom of what happened over this 30-year period," Community Services Minister Lisa Neville was quoted by the newspaper as saying.

"Incest is horrible," she said. "It is the worst crime, it absolutely breaches that duty of care that parents have and is a betrayal of trust."