Indiana State Police on Friday announced the arrest of Dejaune Anderson, the mother of 5-year-old Cairo Jordan, whose dead body was found stuffed in a suitcase in October 2022.
Acting on a tip passed onto an Indiana detective, U.S. Marshals located Anderson in the southern suburbs of Los Angeles.
A murder warrant had been issued for Anderson not long after 5-year-old Cairo, from Georgia, was discovered by a mushroom hunter in a wooded area near Indiana’s border with Kentucky.
The child had been stuffed into a brightly colored, hard-shelled suitcase decorated in a Las Vegas theme.
Indiana State Police Sgt. Carey Huls called the situation somber, but celebrated Anderson’s capture as a victory for investigators who spent nearly a year and a half on the case.
“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.
An autopsy concluded Cairo died from an electrolyte imbalance caused by viral gastroenteritis — vomiting and diarrhea that led to dehydration. The child otherwise appeared to be well cared for, Huls said, and did not have any significant injuries.
Another woman accused of playing a part in the death, Dawn Coleman of Shreveport, Louisiana, pleaded guilty in November to charges of aiding, inducing or causing murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice. She was sentenced to 30 years, with five years suspended to probation.
With News Wire Services
