REGINA – A man accused of fatally beating a Regina toddler has told his second-degree murder trial that he did not kill the child.
Adam Cyr took the stand Wednesday in his own defence and said he loved being a father and never lost his temper with the girl.
Cyr is charged in the June 2012 death of Natalia Shingoose, the two-year-old daughter of Amanda Trevors, the woman he was living with at the time.
Under questioning from defence lawyer Bob Hrycan, the accused told the jury that he enjoyed looking after Natalia, and gave her only an occasional slap on her bottom or a time-out to discipline her if she got out of line.
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Cyr, who is 34, was also shown photos of the girl’s body, and when asked if he caused her injuries, replied “I did not.”
He is expected to return to the stand today.
The court also heard that several hours before the girl was found dead, Cyr babysat the child while Trevors was at work.
Cyr said the mother came home around 9 p.m. and he told her Natalia might have fallen. Trevors checked on the toddler and said she was fine. The girl’s lifeless body was discovered in her bed the next morning. She died of internal bleeding caused by six broken ribs that lacerated a lung and her liver.
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Cyr said the body was in a different position than it had been the previous night and that she was covered with a blanket, which wasn’t there before.
He also told the jury that he was awakened at 3 a.m. by Trevors’ close friend, Matthew Bennett, who walked in to tell them their front door was open. He said Bennett was “freaking out” and that he had never seen him like that before.
Court heard Trevors was calm when she initially discovered the child’s body, but went into a frenzy when she placed a 911 call. Cyr testified she often sold cocaine out of the house, and that she removed some drug paraphernalia before calling.
Cyr is the only witness for the defence. The trial is now into its third week.
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