ARCADIA, CA – The Indiana mother suspected in the 2022 murder of her 5-year-old son, Cairo Jordan, has been arrested in California nearly two years after fleeing her home state. The authorities believe she killed the child, assuming he was possessed.
Indiana State Police confirmed DeJuane Anderson’s capture on Thursday by the US Marshals in Arcadia, a Los Angeles suburb. The arrest brings some relief to those closely associated with the case. Sgt. Stephen Wheeles of the Indiana State Police appreciated the arrest as a critical step that allowed the investigation to progress.
Authorities suspect that Anderson killed Cairo at their Louisville residence, with another woman named Dawn Elaine Coleman alleged to have assisted in discarding the child’s body in a deserted area of Washington County, Indiana.
Cairo’s body was discovered in a distinctive suitcase by a mushroom hunter on April 16, 2022. It took investigators around half a year to identify the remains, which were found clean and still clothed. An arrest warrant for Anderson was issued later that year in October, listing multiple charges, including murder and the neglect of a dependent.
Prior to Cairo’s death, Anderson had reportedly made several Facebook posts hinting at her belief that her son was demonic and required an exorcism.
Coleman, who had also been evading the authorities, was apprehended in San Francisco in October 2022. She confessed to having seen Anderson suffocating Cairo, who then asked for her help in disposing of the body. Colemen assisted Anderson in placing Cairo’s body into a suitcase and driving to Indiana to abandon the suitcase.
The boy’s cause of death was determined to be an electrolyte imbalance, likely a result of vomiting and diarrhea, causing severe dehydration.
A tip from a concerned citizen was what initially led investigators to Anderson’s location in California. She was arrested as she attempted to board a public transit train. Officials anticipate it could take up to a month before she is extradited to Indiana.
In exchange for a guilty plea back in November, Coleman was handed a 30-year sentence with five years suspended.