A man accused of stabbing his ex-girlfriend and killing her toddler has been charged with a string of crimes, including murder.

Rashad Trice, 26, is facing 20 charges from the Michigan state attorney general in the US related to the death of two-year-old Wynter Cole-Smith, as well as sexual assault and assault with intent to murder.

Trice is accused of kidnapping the child on 2 July in the town of Lansing after he allegedly sexually assaulted her mother, and was arrested on the morning of 3 July.

However, when he was arrested he was not with Wynter, with her body being found three days later in an alleyway in Detroit.

Federal investigators said they believe the two-year-old was strangled with a mobile phone charging lead.

In a statement, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessell said: “We have alleged today, and our many charges reflect, a horrific and brutal crime spree from Lansing to Detroit to St Clair Shores.”

The charges against Trice include murder, kidnapping and kidnapping causing death.

Trice is being held at the Newaygo County Jail and could face life in prison without parole if found guilty.