SELLERSBURG, Ind. — Nearly two years after 5-year-old Cairo Jordan’s body was found inside a suitcase and dumped in the middle of rural southern Indiana, his mother has been charged in his death.
Cairo’s mother, 38-year-old Dejaune Anderson, has been on the run since the young boy’s body was found in 2022, according to Indiana State Police (ISP).
According to records from a Los Angeles County Jail in Van Nuys, California, Anderson was arrested on March 14. She’s the second woman arrested in Cairo's death.
ISP Sgt. Carey Huls said a tip earlier this week led investigators to Arcadia, California. There, US Marshalls were able to arrest Anderson without incident as she tried to board a public transport train.
Anderson is charged with murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice.
"It's a somber moment," Huls said. "We did know that this day was going to come, but to have it come at this time and to have her in custody, I'm just excited [for the detectives]. We're all very excited, lifted up and buoyed by the fact that she's behind bars and can be brought back to Indiana so we can continue this trail for justice for Cairo."
Huls said detectives are traveling to the Van Nuys jail where Anderson is being held at to continue the investigation.
Anderson will be brought back to Indiana, but a timeline of when she could be brought back is unknown.
Now, in a Salem, Indiana cemetery, the grave of a little boy, decorated with flowers and mementos, stands more peaceful than the night before.
The arrest made thousands of miles away has rippled all the way to this small town.
"[It means] closure. Closure for him, the family and everybody in this community," Dale Jonas, a cemetery sexton, said. "Daily. They think about him all the time. They visit this grave at least two to three times a week."
Second woman sentenced
On April 16, 2022, Jeff Meredith was hunting for mushrooms in a wooded area of Washington County, Indiana when he found a bright, multi-colored “Las Vegas” print suitcase sitting somewhere it didn’t belong.
Inside was the body of a young boy, Cairo Jordan.
An autopsy report revealed the boy, who is from Atlanta, Georgia, died from an electrolyte imbalance, likely from complications caused by dehydration. Police said his toxicology report also came back negative.
For six months, Cairo’s identity remained unknown despite numerous searches of national databases for missing children.
During that time, Salem, Indiana honored the young boy, holding a funeral and calling him their "Unknown Angel."
ISP would later issue two arrest warrants for Cairo's mother and Dawn Coleman -- two women with a history of run-ins with law enforcement agencies across the country.
Coleman was arrested in October of 2023. She took a plea deal last November, pleading guilty to aiding, inducing or causing murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice.
She will spend 25 years in prison with five years of probation but will receive a year-and-a-half credit for time served.
As part of the plea agreement, Coleman will need to testify against Anderson in any criminal case related to the death of Jordan.
According to court documents, Coleman told investigators she walked into a bedroom of the trio's Louisville home and found Anderson on top of Cairo.
The boy was face-down on the mattress and court documents claim Coleman told investigators, "it was already done."
Coleman said she helped Anderson put Cairo's body in a hard-sided suitcase with a Las Vegas label before they drove across the Ohio River into Washington County, Indiana, where Coleman dumped the suitcase in the woods.
Anderson was known to frequently post on social media about rituals, magic and "raising her frequency."
In many posts to social media, Anderson wrote about how a 100-year-old demon was living inside her son and how demons were using children as "avatars."
Coleman described herself as a “healer” and was known for going live on social media almost daily offering paid spiritual readings for viewers. She also claimed to speak with viewers’ ancestors.
Days before Cairo's body was found, Anderson tried contacting an Indiana priest about doing an exorcism on the young boy.
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