Authorities revealed new details about the death of a 2-year-old Michigan girl when they released federal kidnapping charges against her mother’s ex-boyfriend on Friday.
Wynter Cole Smith’s body was found Wednesday in a Detroit alley after she was allegedly taken from her mother’s apartment in Lansing earlier this week, sparking an intense search. On Friday, 26-year-old Rashad Trice was charged with kidnapping a minor and abduction resulting in death, according to a federal complaint obtained by JS. He already faced eight other charges, including criminal sexual conduct, assault with intent to murder, home burglary and unlawful imprisonment.
“The allegations in this case are heartbreaking,” Mark Totten, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan, said in a statement. rack announcement of the charges. “My thoughts are very much with Wynter’s family as we all prayed for her safe return home.”
Lansing Police Department
According to an FBI agent’s likely statement in the federal indictment, Trice is accused of stabbing his ex-girlfriend, Wynter’s mother, multiple times and then sexually assaulting her on Monday.
Severely injured, she fled to her mother’s apartment, which is in the same complex, leaving Wynter and her 1-year-old brother behind, authorities said.
When Lansing police arrived on the scene, Wynter and Trice had disappeared, but the 1-year-old was still in the apartment. A 2013 Chevy Impala that belonged to Wynter’s grandmother was also missing, and authorities issued an Amber Alert for the girl, Trice, and the vehicle.
Later that day, officers in St. Clair Shores spotted the Impala and tried to stop it. But the driver, identified by authorities as Trice, led police on a chase that ended in a crash. Trice was arrested, but Wynter was not in the car, prompting more searches for the girl and a $25,000 reward for any information leading to her location.
Wednesday night, after reviewing records from Trice’s phone, surveillance video and license plate readers, police said they found the girl’s body in the alley. Her death was apparently caused by strangulation with a pink cell phone charging cord, according to the FBI agent’s probable statement.
The statement added that the cord found with Wynter’s body matched pink cord pieces found in the Impala. A photo attached to the document shows parts of a pink cord inside the vehicle, along with blood from wounds Trice allegedly received when stabbing the girl’s mother.
“It’s so hard to imagine the last moments of little Wynter’s life,” said Dawn Ison, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. rack.
While in custody, Trice allegedly admitted that he and Wynter’s mother had stabbed each other during an argument over money.
Trice told investigators he knew about the Amber Alert and wanted to kill himself, the FBI agent said.
“I’m already a monster,” Trice is said to have told investigators.
When he was arraigned in state court on Wednesday, he was charged with eight felonies and denied connection.
If Trice is now convicted of kidnapping resulting in death, he would receive a mandatory minimum sentence of life in prison and be eligible for the death penalty.
Wynter’s family previously announced a vigil for Friday night to honor the girl and mourn her death.
“We are heartbroken at the loss of our beautiful daughter, granddaughter, nephew, niece and big sister,” the family said. according to ClickOnDetroit. “Wynter’s short but beautiful life was needlessly taken from her, and we will forever mourn her death.”