Hamilton man says he was too drunk to notice his friend was taping him abusing 7-year old girl

A Hamilton man who pleaded guilty last week to sexually abusing a seven-year-old is back in court fighting the accusation that he knew his friend was filming the abuse with a smart phone.

The 37-year-old man has pleaded not guilty to a charge of making child pornography. He's the last of five adults in court in relation to the sexual abuse of a little girl, whose mom's then-boyfriend offered her up to adults on Craigslist.

The man — the former boyfriend's friend — pleaded guilty to sexual interference last week. But he still says even though someone was holding a camera phone with a light on it a foot away from him, he was too drunk to notice it.

"I'm telling you the truth. I didn't know he was taping it," said the man, who took the stand in his own defence Monday.

The case is a horrific one in which five adults have pleaded guilty to their roles in abusing the girl.

At the heart of it is the then-boyfriend, who not only abused her, but took thousands of images and videos of it over an 18-month period. He is now serving 13 years.

The latest defendant was working as a truck driver in April 2016 when he invited the boyfriend to his Barton Street East place to party. The pair did cocaine and drank 24 beers.

As they did, the defendant testified, the boyfriend showed him more videos of the little girl — as he'd done about 10 times before — and encouraged his friend to come over and "try it."

The pair bought more beer and cocaine and drove to the boyfriend's house. They roused the little girl from sleep, and in the dark, the defendant sexually abused her while the boyfriend filmed it.

The video file appears to have been taken around 4:19 a.m., said Sgt. John Tselepakis of Hamilton Police Service.

The defendant drove home afterward, but later said he was too drunk and high to remember much, or know whether the boyfriend was filming him.

In court, the Crown showed a May 2016 video of the man's first police interview, where he repeatedly told investigators he wasn't the type to abuse a child, and that he thought it was "gross."

"I was so gone," he said in his police interview. "I was really bombed."

"Just because (the boyfriend) does that, I shouldn't be getting involved. Just because I was his friend doesn't mean I do stuff like that. I go to work every day. It's just not right."

"I just drank way too much and I don't know, I must have just did it or something."

The defendant isn't being named to protect the identity of the victim. 

Sexual interference and making child pornography both come with sentences of one to 14 years in jail. The girl's aunt has been vocal throughout the court appearances about the need for mandatory minimums for people who sexually abuse children.

Justice Joe Fiorucci will give a verdict in Hamilton court on Aug. 28, with sentencing on one or both counts to follow.