DETROIT – Local and federal law enforcement in Lansing, Detroit, and everywhere in between, were still searching Wednesday for a 2-year-old girl who was abducted more than 55 hours ago.
Wynter Cole Smith has been missing since the night of July 2, when she was kidnapped from a Lansing home by Rashad Trice, 26. The man reportedly stabbed the child’s mother, then took off with Wynter in the mother’s 2013 white Chevrolet Impala.
Trice fled from Lansing and drove to Metro Detroit overnight. By about 5 a.m. on Monday, July 3, Trice was arrested by police in St. Clair Shores -- but Wynter was not with him.
Investigators said Tuesday that Trice has family and known associations in the Metro Detroit area, and that they were exploring all of those connections. Still, Trice has not been cooperating with the investigation, and authorities have not given any indication that they know where Wynter may be.
How to help
Police on Tuesday released maps showing the route they believe Trice had driven after fleeing Lansing. Investigators are asking anyone traveling this route to be as alert as they can, and to report anything that seems out of the ordinary, even if it feels small or insignificant.
Any information that may help with the case can be shared with the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI, or by clicking here to submit an online tip. A $25,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to Wynter.
Anyone out searching is asked to be careful, as traffic could still be heavy Wednesday due to the holiday.
Here are the route maps
Trice is believed to have driven on the freeway from Lansing beginning at 11:20 p.m. on July 2. He is then believed to have reached Metro Detroit after midnight, and then Detroit itself at around 1:10 a.m.
He’s believed to have left Detroit around 2:40 a.m., and moved around the east side until his arrest in St. Clair Shores around 5 a.m.
Anyone who drives along that route is encouraged to safely keep their eyes peeled for anything that may help the investigation.
Doorbell cameras
Southeast Michigan residents and business owners who are along Trice’s believed route are asked to review their doorbell or security camera footage from overnight July 2 into July 3.
Police are looking for any specific information about where the white Chevy Impala drove, stopped or parked within those overnight hours. That information could help narrow down where Trice went, and where Wynter may be located.
Police are especially interested in where Trice had gone between 11:15 p.m. Sunday and 1 a.m. Monday.
If you notice anything unusual on your cameras from overnight Sunday into Monday, investigators are asking you to reach out. Again, you can call the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI, or click here to submit an online tip. A $25,000 reward is being offered for information that leads to Wynter.
The girl was last seen wearing a white T-shirt with rainbows on it. She is about 2 feet tall, weighs 25-30 pounds, and has brown eyes and shoulder-length braided hair.
Click here to read more about the kidnapping.