A mum and her former lover have denied murdering her young son.
Two-year-old Kyrell Matthews was found in cardiac arrest at a home in south London on October 20, 2019.
He had suffered significant blunt trauma injuries to various parts of his body and 39 rib fractures, MyLondon reports.
The boy’s mum Phylesia Shirley, 23, and her former partner Kemar Brown, 27, were charged with murder and causing or allowing the death of a child.
Both defendants appeared at the Old Bailey on Thursday and denied the charges against them.
The pair, both also from Thornton Heath in Croydon, south London, spoke only to enter not guilty pleas at the hearing, which was also attended by members of the boy’s family.
Anne Whyte QC, prosecuting, told the court: “Both defendants deny inflicting any harm on the deceased.”
Mark Bagshaw QC, representing Shirley, and Mark McDonald, representing Brown, also attended the hearing.
Judge Anthony Leonard set a trial date for January 5, 2022.
The trial is expected to last three to four weeks.
Shirley and Brown, who was not the boy’s father, were remanded into custody.