A "shaken" schoolboy told police an eight-year-old was hit on the face with a gravestone while they were playing in a cemetery, a fatal accident inquiry heard.

A friend of Ciaran Williamson, who died on May 26 last year after a stone fell on him in Craigton Cemetery, spoke to police shortly after.

He told a policeman a stone hit him on the back when he jumped out of a tree with others and Ciaran was "hit on the face".

Another boy said one of their group shouted "you're murderers, we're murderers" after the incident.

Police constable Neil Galbraith, who took the statement from the first child, read it to a fatal accident inquiry into Ciaran's death.

The inquiry, which continued on Tuesday at Glasgow Sheriff Court, is to establish if there were any reasonable precautions that could have prevented the tragedy.

It will also aim to establish if there were any defects in the system of work which caused or contributed to Ciaran's death.

Mr Galbraith said he was the first officer on the scene after hearing a young person had a possible head injury in the cemetery.

He said Ciaran was already in the ambulance when he arrived at the scene.

The officer said he had to "coax" one of Ciaran's friends who was "very shaken, very nervous" when he took a statement later that night.

He said: "It was very hard to take information from him, however, we were trying to establish exactly what happened."

The inquiry heard the ten-year-old said they went into the graveyard "through the hole in the wall" with friends including Ciaran.

He told police: "We seen a tree we wanted to climb, the tree was next to a big stone."

The child said: "Ciaran was standing in front of the big stone. Me (and others) all jumped from the tree at the same time.

"As soon as I landed the big stone fell on my back. It hit Ciaran in the face.

"I stayed with Ciaran while everyone ran for help."

Mr Galbraith also took a statement from another boy who was with Ciaran at the time of the incident.

He told police they went to the graveyard and some of the boys wanted to use gravestones to get on to the wall. He said some of the boys climbed up and Ciaran was "waiting at the tombstone to get up on to it".

The child claimed one of the boys wanted to use the tree to get on to the wall and pushed off of the gravestone.

The boy said: "As he pushed off the tombstone, it fell. I leapt out the road but it caught me on my heel."

Police interviews of boys were with Ciaran on the day were also played to the court.

One boy told how one of their group said "You're murderers, we're murderers" when Ciaran was struck.

He said one of his friends jumped on a gravestone to try to get on to the wall and it "just collapsed" as Ciaran was under it.

He said: "I don't know what happened then next thing I woke up I was standing up, turned round, the gravestone was on Ciaran.

"(a boy) was saying 'you're murderers, we're murderers'. Then I said 'no we're not it's just an accident."

The inquiry before sheriff Linda Ruxton continues.