Amanda Knox held a knife and stabbed Meredith Kercher while Rafael Sollecito and Rudy Guede held her down, an Italian prosecutor has told a court hearing.

The claims were made yesterday as the prosecutor finished summing up evidence at a closed court hearing in Perugia.

He has asked for life for Guede, and for Knox and Sollecito to be sent for trial over Kercher's death.

The prosecutor also alleged the brutal killing was inspired by Manga comics.

Rudy Guede has opted for a 'fast-track' trial, while a judge still has to rule whether there is enough evidence against fellow suspects Amanda Knox and Rafael Sollecito for them to face the court.

The hearing into the death of British exchange student Meredith Kercher has also heard from a new witness.

In the new development, mechanic Gianfranco Lombardi told police he saw a dark-coloured car outside the house where Meredith was found dead.

The statement is significant because Sollecito has a dark-coloured car, but claims he was not at the house.

In his statement, Lombardi said: "It was about 11pm on the night of November 1, 2007, and I was in the area because I had been called out to fix a broken-down car.

"When I got to Via Sant Antonio, close to where the house where Meredith Kercher was murdered, I saw a dark-coloured car parked outside and I noticed the gate on the drive was open.

"I didn't notice anyone in the car and I didn't notice anyone coming or going during the eight or 10 minutes it took me to load the broken-down car onto my tow truck."

Kercher was found dead in the bedroom of the house she shared with Knox in Perugia in November last year. She had been stabbed in the neck and her body hidden under her duvet.

Police believe she was killed by the three accused after they tried to make her take part in a sex game. They say DNA evidence shows Knox and her boyfriend Sollecito were in the house at the time of the murder.

Guede, who admits being in the house and having sex with Meredith, requested the 'fast-track' trial because he fears the other two suspects are trying to frame him.

Knox told the latest hearing she was innocent and would have no reason to kill Meredith as she was her friend. Knox "broke down in tears" after protesting her innocence.