The woman who has accused Justin Bieber of fathering her baby allegedly tried to cover up text messages which claimed another man was the father.

Mariah Yeater reportedly asked a friend on Wednesday (16.11.11) to erase an incriminating message, and offered them a cut of the money she is hoping to make from her paternity claim.

Mariah's message, which has been obtained by TMZ.com, to her friend - who has been in touch with her since before her baby was born -reads: "ERASE ALL MESSAGES from my mom."

The message goes on to say Mariah's mother had sent texts to the pal in the past, stating that four-month-old Tristyn was fathered by Mariah's ex-boyfriend Robbie.

While Mariah's pal - who asked not to be named when showing TMZ.com the messages - complied with her request, they still had another incriminating text she hadn't asked them to delete, reading: "Would you please stress to Robbie how important it is for him to be in his son's life?" 

A lawyer for Justin said: "This information proves Mariah Yeater fabricated the story.  Our independent investigation indicates Ms. Yeater never met Justin, she has consistently identified another man as the child's father, and Ms. Yeater and her co-conspirators hatched this scheme in order to extort money from him and to sell her story to the media."

Justin - who is in a relationship with Selena Gomez - has stated he is happy to take a DNA test to prove his innocence.

While Mariah's original lawyers, Lance Rogers and Matt Pare, have stopped representing her and she has dropped her paternity lawsuit, she has assembled a new legal team and is thought to be continuing a claim against the 'Never Say Never' singer out of court.