A woman accused of murder concocted a story about her boyfriend being attacked by several men - one armed with a machete and another with a double-barrelled shotgun, a jury heard.

Defendant Michaela Sargeant later admitted to police she had made up the tale as she was scared her baby would be taken away.

The jury of seven men and five women at Maidstone Crown Court heard Sargeant claimed the gun went off accidentally on February 12 this year, firing a fatal shot into victim Kevin McKinley's buttock, and damaging a major artery.

Mr McKinley, 32, had gone to the home of Sargeant and her partner Lewis Wickenden in Overy Street, Dartford, at about 7.45pm.

He had been driven to nearby Fulwich Road by a mutual friend of his and Wickenden's, Marley Booth.

Wickenden alleged threats had been made against him and Sergeant, and they didn't feel safe in their home.

There were also claims he owed £500 and would be growing cannabis on behalf of others.

A jury at Maidstone Crown Court heard Mr Booth waited in the car with Mr McKinley's son while Mr McKinley visited the address.

Within minutes, Mr McKinley, who lived in Louvain Road, Stone, had allegedly been blasted in the street with the gun by the 25-year-old.

Sargeant, who was at first treated as a witness, told officers two days after the shooting that Wickenden and Mr McKinley had started brawling in the street.

Her boyfriend had left the gun by a back gate and when he managed to get away from Mr McKinley, she picked it up.

Prosecutor Philip Bennetts QC told the court: "She said Kevin McKinley came towards her, she put the gun to his head, she told him to **** off and leave them alone.

"She said Kevin McKinley went to walk away and 'the next thing I knew it just went off. I didn't know I had shot him at that point until I heard him screaming'. "

The court was told that a gun expert later estimated that it was fired at a range between 0.5m and 2m. Mr Bennetts said it was from this evidence that the jury could conclude Sargeant's account was untrue.He said: "The answer is that the fatal shot was discharged at close range to the body of an unarmed man."The court earlier heard Mr Booth heard loud bangs and drove towards the house and saw Mr McKinley's body on the ground.

CCTV footage played on the first day of the murder trial showed Mr Booth abandoning his car on a roundabout as he went to his friend's assistance.

The images also showed Wickenden, 26, driving away from the house. Prosecutor Philip Bennetts QC told the court he had the shotgun in his car at the time.

Paramedics arrived at the scene at 8.01pm and tried to help Mr McKinley. He was taken to Darent Valley Hospital, where he suffered a cardiac arrest.

Resuscitation was attempted but, said the prosecutor, despite "all efforts" from the medical team Mr McKinley was pronounced dead at 10.25pm.

A post mortem examination revealed a single gunshot wound to his left buttock.

The pellets resulted in damage to Mr McKinley's left hip bone and a major artery tracking blood to his left leg.

Multiple injuries were also caused to other blood vessels attached to the large bowel.

Mr Bennetts earlier told the jury that Sargeant, who denies murder and manslaughter, and Wickenden, who denies assisting an offender and possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, were the only witnesses to the shooting.

The trial continues.