Inset: Nicholas Stout (Denver Police Dept.) Background: The area in Colorado where Stout allegedly killed his girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter (Google Maps).
A "short-fused" man in Colorado is accused of killing his girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter, allegedly beating the child to death after the toddler hit him.
Nicholas Stout, 38, was taken into custody over the weekend and charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of child abuse resulting in death, authorities announced.
The victim's mother, 38-year-old Melissa Wayne, was also arrested and is facing one count of child abuse resulting in death.
According to a news release from the Denver Police Department, officers responded to a 911 call about an unresponsive 2-year-old at a residence in the 100 block of South Vrain Street in the early morning hours of Sunday, Jan. 18. Upon arriving at the address, first responders located the victim, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
Stout was taken into custody that day, while Wayne was not placed under arrest until Tuesday evening.
Court documents obtained by Denver ABC affiliate KMGH identified the victim as Valkyrie Erickson and provided additional details about the circumstances of her death.
In an interview with investigators, Stout reportedly tried to lay blame at Valkyrie's feet, claiming that the child was a "dare devil" whose fatal wounds were self-inflicted.
"Nicholas [Stout] described Valkyrie as a 'dare devil' and stated that she liked to jump around on the bed," police reportedly wrote in a probable cause affidavit. "During the time that they were trying to sleep on Friday night, Valkyrie started to jump over Melissa [Wayne], then over Nicholas [Stout] and was about to jump off of the bed. Nicholas [Stout] said that he put his arm over to catch Valkyrie and stop her from jumping off of the bed. In the process of grabbing her, she hit her head on the night stand/coffee table that was next to his bed."
Stout also claimed that he was out getting cigarettes at about midnight the evening before Valkyrie was found unresponsive.
However, interviews with witnesses, including at least one individual who lived in the house with the family, belied Stout's claims.
The housemate, who had been living at the residence for about a week, reportedly told police he "frequently" heard Stout yelling at Valkyrie, which was often followed by "slapping noises coming from the bedroom" where Stout stayed with Valkyrie and her mother.
"[The housemate] stated that between the hours of 11 p.m. – 1 a.m., on January 17, 2026, that he heard the yelling and screaming continue," the affidavit states. "[The housemate] heard [Stout] say something to the effect of 'You f—ing bit me' and 'I f—ing hate you.' [The housemate] stated that it was a close proximity in time after those statements that 'the baby' stopped crying and everything went quiet for the rest of the night."
Police said that every individual in the house "would normally avoid" Stout "because of his temper." A summary of how others described Stout included the following: "Short fused," "hot headed," "unhinged," "unpredictable," "goes off the wall," and "very aggressive," according to a report from Denver NBC affiliate KUSA.
Stout appeared in court on Tuesday where a judge ordered him to be held without bond, local CBS affiliate KCNC reported.