Dion Roberts, a 30-year-old Whitehorse man accused of sexual assault, took the stand Thursday as his Yukon Supreme Court jury trial continued.

Benjamin Bruce Warnsby, one of Roberts’ two attorneys, began the questioning.

Warnsby asked how intoxicated Roberts was on the night of Feb. 8, 2016, the night of the complaint.

Roberts said he would not speak for the complainant’s level of intoxication, but said he himself was at about a six out of 10.

He explained that he had not blacked out. He could still talk without impairment, he added, and his memory was not affected.

Warnsby asked what happened when he was brought to the complainant’s residence.

Roberts said he, the complainant and a roommate entered and proceeded upstairs. He had a beer in hand, and sat on their couch. He asked for a deck of cards because he didn’t just want to sit there.

There was no deck in the household, but they did have a drinking game.

While this game went on, Roberts said he was told there was a fourth person in the house – the roommate who had previously testified in the trial, not the one with whom he’d entered the residence.

He said he was shocked, and that the complainant wanted to invite the roommate to the game.

Roberts said he went to the roommate’s room and knocked on the door.

He said she yelled out “What?” He went in, sat at the foot of her bed and introduced himself.

They had a brief conversation, and she declined the invitation to join the party. He left the room, he told the court. He estimated this conversation lasted two minutes.

Warnsby asked how the game wrapped up.

Roberts said the complainant and her other roommate were getting tired and wanted to go to bed. He said he asked if he could sleep on the couch. The complainant said he could.

He said he laid down for some time and heard the roommate with whom he’d entered the residence blast rap music.

He said he dozed off until being awakened by the complainant. She was at his feet and asked that he go to her bedroom, Roberts testified. He said she led the way.

As for what happened in the bedroom, Roberts said they sat on her bed.

He said she told him that no one could know what was about to happen, and the sexual encounter began.

He said it stopped when both of them heard the sound of a shower starting. At this point, he said, the complainant yelled, “Get off, get off, get off!”

Roberts said he was confused, and got off of her. He said she pushed him off of her with her hand and forearm. He laid down on the bed.

He fell asleep for a brief time but would be woken up when the roommate who previously testified was yelling at him to leave the residence.

Roberts said he told the roommate he was with the complainant, but that she didn’t care.

He said he was feeling uncomfortable because he was naked – something he doesn’t like. He gathered his clothes and asked for privacy, but was denied it.

“I was embarrassed and ashamed,” Roberts said. “I felt like my dignity had been ripped out.”

Roberts said he got dressed and left the room. He walked down the stairs and sat down to put on his shoes.

At this point, he put down his keys and wallet, two items he would forget to pick up. He returned for his keys.

After leaving, he returned to his mother’s house, where he was living at the time. He said this was about 4 a.m. or 5 a.m.

Warnsby later asked about the night of Roberts’ arrest. He said he’d been driving with his daughter and his now-fiancée.

They were returning home from dinner at 9:30 p.m. March 14, 2016.

RCMP Const. Trudy Pike, who had taken the complainant’s statement, asked him to come in for questioning.

Roberts said he was allowed to go to the detachment, and would not be arrested in front of his daughter. He told his girlfriend, who was shocked, disappointed and scared, he testified.

Roberts proceeded to admit that most of what he told police at the time was a lie.

Warnsby asked why he lied. Roberts said he had panicked, and had just wanted to get everything over with.

He explained that the lies snowballed as he tried to cover up that he was being dishonest. He denied ever seeing the complainant that night or being at the bar where they had met.

Crown prosecutor Paul Battin conducted the cross-examination. He asked about Roberts’ employment and history.

The accused said he is an officer at the Whitehorse Correctional Centre when this incident happened. He has been there since June 2012. He had been in that profession for about 10 years, also working in Inuvik, N.W.T. and Yellowknife.

Battin asked why he didn’t just go home after the bar if his mother lived near the complainant’s residence. Roberts said he was looking for friends and company.

Battin asked if he’d been looking for someone to cuddle with. Roberts said he was not, and had intended to sleep on the couch that night.

Battin asked if he drank more after the bar. Roberts said he did.

Battin said that must have meant that by the time Roberts went to sleep, he was much more intoxicated than a six out of 10. Roberts said he was not, but if he went up the scale, it would have been a seven at the most.

Battin asked why he would have gone into the roommate’s room to invite her to play a game when he did not know her. He said the walls are thin, so she would have known a party was taking place.

Roberts said he knew it was a bad idea, and that the discourse was cordial.

Battin said the complainant never consented to the sexual encounter.

Roberts disagreed, saying her action clearly conveyed the message that she did.

Battin asked if there had been a conversation where she’d verbally given consent. Roberts said there had not.

Moving toward the night of the arrest, Battin pointed to the statement where Pike said on the record it was 9:02 p.m. at the start of the interview.

He asked if Roberts was lying about the timeframe. Robers said that part wasn’t a lie, but a mistake.

Battin asked if Roberts had been together with his girlfriend at the time of the incident. Roberts said they had been.

Battin asked that since the complainant had approached him for sex, why did he not say he was in a relationship?

Battin said the couple had been fighting, and had taken a break from the relationship. That was why he was living at his mother’s house.

Battin next went over Roberts’ statement, asking which elements were lies.

Roberts said he’d lied about seeing the complainant that night, knowing where she lived, remembering her address, not knowing her roommates and being at her residence.

Battin showed the video of the interview with Pike, and asked why he appeared calm in the video.

The accused said he may have appeared calm, but he was panicking in his head. In his job, he has been trained to show no physical signs of distress.

Battin said that when someone lies, it becomes hard to tell when that person is telling the truth.

Roberts agreed, saying he will have to live with this poor decision for the rest of his life. He said he regrets lying and knew he would have to take responsibility in court.

Battin asked why he did not come forward to change his statement.

Roberts said he had spoken with a lawyer who had advised him not to.

The trial, being presided over by Justice Leigh Gower, continued today.