Angry 100kg man stomped toddler to death after tripping over her, hears Australian court

A man in Australia stood on the stomach of a three-year-old girl and killed her, a court in Victoria has heard. The 22-year-old, who has pleaded guilty to homicide, put his full weight of 100kg (220 pounds) on the toddler who died a day later. The killer, racked with guilt and fear, waited seven months to admit what he had done.

The Supreme Court of Victoria heard how the man stood on the toddler's stomach "in frustration" after tripping over her while she played on the floor. The child suffered terrible injuries but the man told her to tell her mother that she had a stomach ache.

The girl suffered a ruptured liver and bleeding in both kidneys caused by blunt force trauma to her abdomen. By noon the next day she had died in hospital.

"In frustration, he turned her around and stepped on her stomach with one foot," senior crown prosecutor Kerri Judd QC told the court. "He took his other foot off the ground, thereby putting his entire weight on her."

A psychologist said the man waited seven months to come forward because he was overcome with a sense of guilt and shame and was afraid of the consequences.

"Shame, guilt and fear had left him paralysed," said psychologist Patrick Newton.

The girl's mother wiped away tears while the graphic details of the crime were revealed. She excused herself from the courtroom several times. In her victim statement which was read out to the court, the mother spoke of her feelings of betrayal, The Guardian reported.

"I was lied to for seven months when he knew the truth," she said. "I no longer trust anyone after being betrayed ... like this."

The girl's father said he suffered from severe anxiety and lost 44kg since the death of his daughter.

The man's defence barrister Simon Moglia said the confession "demonstrates remorse, albeit after time."