The mother of toddler boy who died after her boyfriend deliberately crushed him by pushing his car seat back twice tried to blame her friend for ignoring his cries, a court heard.

Alfie Lamb was sat in the rear footwell when Stephen Waterson, 25, became irate about his moaning of have too little room and twice deliberately moved his seat back.

The boy aged 42 months was "squashed by the car seat and suffocated" cutting off oxygen to his brain.

He suffered brain damage, fell unconscious and paramedics were called to his home in Croydon before he died from "crush asphyxia" three days later.

Both Waterson, 25, and Adrian Hoare, 23, are on trial at the Old Bailey accused of Alfie's manslaughter.

Hoare was sat behind Waterson while Alfie was between her legs in the footwell and friend Emilie Williams was sat behind driver Marcus Lamb.

But when arrested she claimed she repeatedly asked Waterson to stop putting his car seat back but Miss Williams told her Alfie was "fine" contradicting Miss Williams' account.

In an interview she told police: "'Alfie was in between my legs, like he moaned a little bit so I asked Stephen to move his chair forward and he loved it to start with but then moved it back and Alfie started to moan again.

"'And then I kept asking him like repeatedly, like I can't remember how many times I asked him but I asked him to move his chair and Emilie told him that Alfie was fine and to leave the chair where it was.'"

And after Alfie was taken to hospital Williams, Waterson and Hoare initially lied to police they had been travelling in a taxi at the time, it was said.

The court also heard Waterson used a false name when he visited Alfie in intensive care.

Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson QC said: "At the hospital Waterson made a point of telling an officer Jack Fordham that the mother of the child had been picked up on Lower Addiscombe Road in a white VW Golf by Aaron Fosters, who had driven her to Adams Way and told her to wait there.

"He had not returned. He thus sought to give the same account that Hoare had chosen to give."

Before the machines keeping Alfie alive were shut off, Hoare asked Waterson to come but he didn't come back to hospital again.

The court heard 11 days after Alfie's death Waterson sent text messages to Hoare saying he would take the blame for everything.

Prosecutor Duncan Atkinson QC said: "On February 15, Waterson sent a message to Hoare which read 'I say this I love you Adrian more than anything and I want this be with me and u blame me for it all.

"I understand as I ain't perfect but I do anything for you am here if u want me police are gonna come talk to me spoken to officers and I gonna take blame for all.

"u were great mum and although we had ups and downs a amazing girl to me please never forget this.'" (Sic) The court heard after the text Hoare gave a different account of what happened.

And in a prepared statement relating to Alfie, Waterson said: "he loved children, and would not deliberately harm a child."