(CBS DETROIT) – A man from Michigan who recently received a life sentence on state charges Wynter Cole-Smith has been given a new life sentence in the federal case for the death of 2-year-old Wynter Cole-Smith, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Friday.
Rashad Trice was convicted after plead guilty to kidnapping resulting in deathIn the case of the state he was pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and first-degree criminal sexual acts.
“Today we achieved a measure of justice,” U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said in a statement. “We cannot bring back Wynter Cole-Smith’s precious life, but we can do our best to ensure her killer is found guilty and spends the rest of his life in prison, and that is what we did today.” Totten continued, “I am so grateful to the hundreds of officers from more than two dozen law enforcement agencies who joined the nationwide search for Wynter Cole-Smith. Their dedication to protect and serve was overwhelming.”
Researchers said Trice kidnapped Wynter on July 2, 2023in Lansing. A federal criminal complaint filed last year alleged that Trice and Wynter’s mother got into an altercation and that he attacked her before taking the child from her home. Trice was arrested in the early morning hours of July 3 in St. Clair Shores; however, the child was not with him at the time of the arrest.
Wynter’s body was found on July 5 near Coleman A. Young International Airport in Detroit. Investigators determined that Trice strangled the child with a telephone cord.
“Our hearts continue to break for little Wynter. She should still be here,” Dawn Ison, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan, said in a statement. “The tireless search and coordination by federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies across the state, over several days, to bring her home safely truly demonstrated the dedicated, collaborative effort we put into protecting and serving our citizens every day. While nothing will bring little Wynter back, I hope her family finds some comfort in that effort and today’s sentence.”
