"The above statement is what I am basing my judgement on."

Exactly my point. I don't think it's very much to go on; I would want to know a lot more before making any kind of judgement. But that's just me, I suppose.

"He paid child support for more than 12 years" - So he wasn't living with her for 12 years - in what way was he acting as a father, other than putting a cheque in the mail once a month? Does anyone here KNOW the answer to that question?