Damilola witness: I cannot read and did not rely on newspaper reports

The chief witness in the Damilola Taylor murder trial claimed yesterday she could not read and angrily denied trawling newspaper reports for details of the case to incorporate into her account.

George Carter-Stephenson QC, defending one of the four boys accused of murdering 10-year-old Damilola, read from a news report that described the boy's blood flowing like a water fountain, a similar phrase to one the witness had used in interviews with police.

The witness, a 14-year-old girl, told the Old Bailey that she had used the phrase after hearing it from one of her friend's fathers. She later withdrew this from her comments to police.

Mr Carter-Stephenson compared other similarities in what she told police to newspaper reports, but the girl denied reading the articles. When the lawyer suggested she had told lies because she was not there when Damilola was attacked, the girl said: "I know what happened on that day, they know what happened on that day, right. I was there."

As the schoolgirl sat slumped in the witness box with her head resting on her hands, she told Mr Carter-Stephenson: "You keep asking me the same question about 30 times."

The girl, who is partly concealed from the courtroom by a screen to protect her identity, repeatedly answered "I can't remember" as he questioned her about what she saw when Damilola was stabbed in the leg with a broken bottle.

Mr Carter-Stephenson told her: "You are frightened to commit yourself because you might be proved wrong."

When she was challenged on where she had been when she saw the attack, the girl said: "I can't remember specifically where I was standing. I only said roughly." Mr. Carter-Stephenson told her: "You have been caught out. This is another lie." She responded: "No, I have not been caught out. I did not write down where I was."

The girl was then handed her police statement, which she had signed, giving her location. "It is wrong," the girl said. "I said roughly when I told the policeman."

She lost her temper again when Mr Carter-Stephenson suggested she had read details of the attack in a newspaper. "You are making me feel so embarrassed," she said. "I can't read. I have told you so many times, I can't read."

Damilola bled to death after being stabbed in the leg with a broken bottle on 27 November 2000 while he was on his way home. He managed to drag himself 30 yards to a stairwell on the North Peckham Estate, south London, close to where he lived.

The court has been told that a gang of youths tried to rob Damilola before the killing. The prosecution says the girl was the only witness to the attack, which she had seen after ducking down behind a car.

Two brothers aged 16, their 17-year-old friend and a 14-year-old boy deny murder, manslaughter and assault with intent to rob.

The witness, who cannot be named for legal reasons, has repeatedly denied giving evidence against the four youths in return for a £50,000 reward.

The court heard earlier this week that she and her mother had run up a £4,000 bill in a week at a hotel where she had been staying on a police witness protection programme.

The trial continues.