A DAD accused of killing his baby son shook him with the force of a high-speed motorbike crash, a court heard today.

Post-mortem tests also revealed that nine-month-old Jordan Ward had fractures to his ribs that would have been caused by intense squeezing.

His father, Stephen Ward, 25, is accused of the manslaughter of Jordan at their former home in Burge Court, Cirencester on June 10, 2014.

Ward, whose address is now listed as Lawnside in Nailsworth, denies both manslaughter and unlawful killing.

Doctors giving medical evidence at Bristol Crown Court explained how most of Jordan's injuries were sustained in the hours leading up to his death, but some could have been inflicted between five to 15 days before.

They said the damage to Jordan's ribs could have been sustained during CPR but that the injuries that caused the fatal brain damage would have come from shaking.

Jordan died after suffering "catastrophic and irreversible" swelling in his brain.

Paediatrician Professor Peter Fleming told the court that Jordan's injuries indicated a level of force comparable to 'that which occurs in a high-velocity motorcycle accident'.

Ward gave evidence in court today and admitted that he may have shaken Jordan 'in the panic' of the incident.

But he maintained that his son choked on food, saying: "I don't really know what happened that day, to be honest. I accept that I must have shaken him. I was trying to do anything I could to dislodge the food.

"I was in pieces and I thought he was fitting. Then he went floppy and that's when I called the ambulance."

But Rosaleen Collins, prosecuting, said: "You made up a breathing difficulty to explain the fact that you shook your son in frustration.

"You did something to harm that baby. You shook him in such a way that you knew something was going to happen to him."

Ward simply said: "I didn't."

The court also heard how Jordan was 'fussy' and would frequently refuse to feed for Ward.

Ward told the jury that his son would cry when he was left alone with him because he 'missed his mum' Paula Watts and only settled when she came home from work – but minutes later he refuted this, saying he only told Miss Watts this to make her 'feel better' about leaving her son.

The former Tesco worker also described an earlier incident where his now ex-partner Miss Watts, 22, had accused him of hitting Jordan.

"I was changing Jordan's nappy on the floor and then he passed urine in my face. I swore and dropped the packet of wet wipes I was holding on the floor and it made a slapping noise.

"He started crying hysterically. Paula was in the bathroom and thought I hit him, but I didn't."

Paula left the house with Jordan but returned the day after a flurry of apologetic texts from Ward.

He wrote: "I'm sorry for everything I've done to hurt you and you don't know how much I love you.

"If you could forgive me for what I've done, I wish none of the bad things had happened.

"I will make none of it happen again. I will never treat you or Jordan like shit again."

He texted another relative: "I've f***ed it all up, lied a couple of times and keep getting angry. And now she's left me and won't come back until I go to anger management classes."

But Ward consistently denied hitting his son, saying the texts referred to a drink-driving incident.

The trial continues.