A Taiwan court has sentenced a man to 1,874 years in jail for raping his daughter 268 times since she was eight years old.

But Taiwan High Court's Kaohsiung branch said the man only needs to serve nine years and eight months in prison as his daughter begged the court to show leniency towards her father, China News Service reported yesterday.

The court said the man raped his 15-year-old daughter every week since she was eight. Under Taiwan's law, a man can be jailed seven years and two months for raping a child under 14. In individuals 15 and above, the sentence is three years and four months. The 268 counts of incestuous rape equate to 1,874 years behind bars.

Both the defendant and plaintiff didn't say whether they will appeal.

The man was divorced and lived with his daughter in southern Taiwan. He raped his daughter for the first time in 1997 when he was intoxicated, the girl told the court.

The daughter told the court she had kept the rapes a secret for years because she was afraid and ashamed.

However, when she became a junior high school student, she called her mother and tearfully told her everything, the report said.