A GRANDFATHER accused of murdering his granddaughter told a court this morning that he fell on her after tripping on a toy.

Mark Jones, 45, is standing trial at Newport Crown Court charged with the murder of Amelia Rose Jones, who was only 41 days old when she died on November 19, 2012.

Jones, of no fixed address, denies the charge.

Defending, Roger Thomas QC asked him what had happened on Saturday, November 17 2012 when he was looking after the baby alone at his daughter’s home at Waun Hywel, Pontnewydd.

Jones said: “I tripped over and fell on Amelia.”

Mr Thomas asked: “Did you believe she had been injured by that?”

Jones said: “At the time, no.”

Later, he said she fell on the floor while he was in charge of her.

Jones told the jury: “I went into the kitchen, had Amelia in my arms, went to put the kettle on and [Amelia] has ended up on the floor.”

But he had said he felt responsible for the baby’s death and that he was “devastated” by his arrest.

His relationship with Amelia’s mother, his daughter Sarah, was also discussed. She had got to know Jones after losing touch earlier.

At the time Ms Jones had two sons, later had a daughter, all of whom Jones would look after, sometimes taking them to and picking them up from school. After Amelia was born, he said he would babysit her too.

But Paul Lewis QC, prosecuting, said Jones had continually used lies, and details to embellish them so relatives found them more believable.

He told Newport Crown Court that Jones had lied to a former partner in 2002 about having testicular cancer.

Jones said he was looking for sympathy and a reason for why she would not leave him.

He told his then partner he would go for the operation alone. Afterwards in a phone call, he pretended to be an Indian doctor who had operated on Jones, the jury heard. He said he could not recall whether he had made that call because of the time that has passed since.

Mr Lewis asked Jones: “It is familiar lie, pretending to be ill?”

Jones said: “Yes.”

And then later Mr Lewis said Jones told his daughter Sarah he was ill on her 23rd birthday. He embellished further lies by walking to her home with crutches.

When asked why he had done so, Jones said he didn’t know.

Proceeding.