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Man charged with sex assault on girl

By Paul A. Long
Post staff report

A Boone County, Ky., man suspected of being an illegal immigrant from Canada is charged with sexually assaulting an 18-month-old girl and posting pornographic pictures on the Internet.

Brian John Graham, 46, pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Boone District Court to seven counts of sodomy and one count of sexual abuse.

Judge Charlie Moore ordered him held on $1 million cash bond.

The charges carry a potential penalty of life in prison.

Authorities first caught wind of the case when an e-mail alerted them that Graham was posting child pornography on the Internet, said Boone County Sheriff Department spokesman Tom Scheben. Immigration and Custom Enforcement officials were notified and began working the case with Sheriff Detective Tracy Watson, Scheben said.

Together, they interviewed Graham, who admitted he had oral sex with the girl at least seven times, and also had the child fondle him, according to court records. The toddler was in Graham's care at the time, according to court records.

Investigators enlisted the help of the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police's Integrated Child Exploitation Team, Scheben said. The probe is continuing, he said, and more charges are expected.

Scheben said the incidents happened in the summer of 2005, and the child is now living with her parents.

It's hard to tell how the child, now 3, is coping, he said. "It's been a year-and-a-half now, so hopefully, this won't even be a memory for her."