Former USU frat member accused of voyeurism pleads not guilty

LOGAN — A 22-year-old former Utah State University student and fraternity member, Griffin Ford has pleaded not guilty to secretly recording himself and another student having sex at a frat house, and then showing the video to his friends.

The plea came after the victim and a detective, investigating the case, testified during a preliminary hearing Monday afternoon, in 1st District Court.

The 21-year-old woman told the court how she found a folder while borrowing the defendant’s laptop computer. Inside the folder were several video files of her and Ford having sex. There were also videos of other women engaging in sex acts with him.

The woman said the videos appeared to be filmed in Ford’s bedroom, behind and to the side of her. She told the court she never saw any camera while having consensual relations with him and never gave her permission to be recorded.

During the one-hour preliminary hearing, state attorney Jacob Gordon played two recorded phone conversations between Ford and the victim. During them, the defendant told her he recorded the two of them so he could remember her. He said the videos were taken using a social media app on his smart phone.

During the calls, Ford said he had recorded himself with several women and showed some of the videos to friends, while at a bar.

Logan City Police detective Darin Cook told the court he seized Ford’s laptop and phone while serving a search warrant to the defendant’s residence. Investigators have not been able to access the devices because both are password protected and encrypted.

Defense attorney Gerald Salcido claimed the victim knew she was being recorded.

Judge Thomas Willmore said prosecutors had presented sufficient evidence to show a crime of voyeurism had been committed. He explained that it would be up to a jury to decide if the victim actually knew she was being filmed. He set a one-day jury trial for February 9 and ordered Ford to appear again in court December 19 for a pretrial conference.

According to Ford’s Facebook page, he transferred from USU and is now attending the University of Utah. He is a member of the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and is originally from Murfreesboro Tennessee.

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