WASHINGTON COUNTY, IN/LOUISVILLE, KY– The complex, two-year-long murder case against Dejaune Anderson, the mother of 5-year-old Cairo Ammar Jordan, whose body was found stuffed in a suitcase in 2022, was dismissed on Tuesday in Indiana and refiled across the state border in Kentucky.
Washington County Prosecuting Attorney Tara Coats Hunt announced Tuesday that all Indiana charges against Anderson have been dropped, a move made after a Jefferson County, Kentucky, grand jury returned a new indictment in the case. Louisville Prosecutor Gerina Whethers will now handle the prosecution.
Cairo Jordan’s remains were discovered in April 2022 by a mushroom hunter in a rural, wooded area of Washington County, Indiana. The boy’s body was found inside a suitcase with a distinctive Las Vegas design.
For months, investigators struggled to identify the boy, finally naming him as Cairo Jordan in October 2022. An autopsy determined his cause of death was an “electrolyte imbalance,” most likely stemming from “a viral gastroenteritis” (severe vomiting and diarrhea leading to dehydration).
Police immediately arrested Anderson’s friend, Dawn Coleman, but the mother remained a fugitive until March 2024, when U.S. Marshals tracked her down in California.
Court documents later revealed disturbing social media posts by Anderson, who was allegedly convinced a “demon was living inside her son.” She wrote extensively about hexes, curses, and rituals, claiming a 100-year-old entity had inhabited Cairo’s body.
Since her extradition, court proceedings in Washington County were plagued by Anderson’s apparent mental health issues. During her initial April 2 court appearance, she identified herself as “Princess,” claimed to be “representing the entity” of Anderson, and stated she was under “NSA Surveillance” and being watched by a “detail from Space Force.”
Judge Larry Medlock denied her motion to dismiss the case and ordered a psychiatric evaluation after Anderson attempted to fire her public defender and insisted on representing herself.
Anderson was initially charged in Indiana with murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice.
The new Kentucky indictment charges her with murder, first-degree manslaughter, first-degree criminal abuse, and abuse of a corpse.
Prosecutor Hunt called the decision to transfer the case “complex and difficult,” but stressed it was necessary to ensure a conviction could not be overturned on a technicality, given the evidence spans both Indiana and Kentucky.
“Although Washington County has been fully prepared to prosecute this case, shifting jurisdiction ensures the strongest legal foundation and prevents any future appellate ruling from overturning a conviction due to a technicality,” Prosecutor Hunt said.
The case has already secured one conviction. Dawn Coleman, who admitted to helping Anderson dispose of Cairo’s remains, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit murder.
In November 2023, she was sentenced to 30 years in prison, with five years suspended to probation. As part of her plea deal, Coleman had agreed to testify against Anderson.
Jefferson County officials in Louisville, Kentucky, will solely handle the prosecution of Dejaune Anderson.
