Actor Macaulay Culkin today described child abuse allegations against Michael Jackson as "absolutely ridiculous."
He told a court in Santa Maria, California, that he could not believe it when he heard that previous witnesses had claimed he had been molested.
"Somebody told me you should probably check out CNN because they're saying something about you," he said.
"I just couldn't believe it. It was amazing to me that nobody even approached me and asked if these allegations were true."
Jackson befriended the Home Alone star in the early 1990s and the youngster, now 24, was a frequent visitor at his Neverland ranch. Culkin told US chat show host Larry King last year that his childhood sleepovers were innocent and that "nothing happened".
He said Jackson was often misunderstood. Former Neverland chef Philip LeMarque has told the court that he caught the pop star with his hand down Culkin's pants in 1991.
He claimed he had been summoned to cook and deliver French fries to the pair in the early hours of the morning. He recalled seeing the pair at a video game and testified that Jackson was holding Culkin up with his right arm so he could reach the controls.
His left hand, he said, was inside the crotch area of the child's pants. "I was shocked," the chef said. "I almost dropped the French fries."
Former Neverland maid Adrian McManus has also alleged that she saw Jackson inappropriately touching the child.
She said she saw him kiss Culkin as his hand rested near his bottom. Culkin is the third alleged victim to give evidence in Jackson's defence.
Asked whether he had ever see Jackson act inappropriately with alleged victims Brett Barnes and Wade Robson, Culkin replied: "I've never seen him do anything improper with anyone."
He told the court that he met Jackson aged nine or 10 and that the pair had remained friends ever since. His family visited Neverland several times and had been free to use any part of the ranch, including Jackson's bedroom, he said.
Under cross-examination, Culkin said he had not initially intended to testify and had been advised not to speak to lawyers.
He said he was not aware whether prosecutors had tried to contact him in 1993, when Jackson was first accused of child abuse, or more recently when his lawyer said he would not be issuing a statement to either side.
He told the court he could not remember who had suggested Jackson accompanied him and a friend on a holiday to Bermuda. Asked whether Jackson gave him a Rolex watch on the trip, Culkin said he could remember it vaguely.
"I was not a person without means, so it wasn't that awe-inspiring," he said.
The prosecution claims Jackson gave a watch to current accuser Gavin Arvizo as a bribe to keep him revealing that he had been given alcohol.