The Murder of Cairo Jordan

According to charging documents and the account provided by Dawn Coleman, Cairo Jordan dies at or near his mother Dejaune Anderson's Louisville area residence. Anderson had reportedly been telling Coleman that Cairo was possessed by demons. The exact circumstances of the days leading up to his death are part of the ongoing prosecution. An autopsy later determines cause of death as an electrolyte imbalance consistent with severe dehydration.

According to Coleman's later testimony, Anderson places Cairo's body in a hard-sided Las Vegas-themed rolling suitcase. Coleman states she assisted in this process. The two women drive across the Ohio River into Washington County, Indiana. Coleman dumps the suitcase in a wooded area near East Holder Road, approximately 80 feet from the road. The suitcase is visible from the roadway. Anderson and Coleman then return to Kentucky.

Jeff Meredith is hunting mushrooms in the wooded area near East Holder Road in Washington County when he discovers the bright Las Vegas-themed suitcase. He opens it and finds a pillow and a black trash bag. Inside the bag is the body of a young child. Meredith contacts police immediately. Indiana State Police respond and begin a homicide investigation. No one has reported the child missing.

Nearly six months after the body was found, Indiana State Police identify the child as Cairo Ammar Jordan, 5, of Atlanta, Georgia. The date of the announcement — October 24 — would have been Cairo's sixth birthday. Felony arrest warrants are issued for Dejaune Ludie Anderson (murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, obstruction of justice) and Dawn Elaine Coleman (neglect of a dependent resulting in death, obstruction of justice). Anderson is at large. Cairo's father, Vincent Jordan, learns of his son's death that day and posts a tribute on social media.

Dawn Elaine Coleman, 40, of Shreveport, Louisiana, is taken into custody in San Francisco and extradited to Indiana. She faces charges of neglect of a dependent resulting in death and obstruction of justice. Anderson remains at large. Authorities travel to Los Angeles in search of Anderson but do not locate her.

Dawn Coleman pleads guilty to aiding, inducing or causing murder, neglect of a dependent resulting in death, and obstruction of justice. She is sentenced to 25 years in prison with five years suspended, receiving credit for time served. As part of her plea agreement, Coleman agrees to testify against Anderson in any criminal case related to Cairo's death. At sentencing, the prosecutor tells Coleman: "You packaged Cairo like trash."

The U.S. Marshals Service locates and arrests Dejaune Ludie Anderson in Arcadia, California, a city east of Los Angeles, while she is attempting to board public transportation. She is taken into custody without incident and held at an LAPD detention facility. Indiana State Police detectives travel to California to continue the investigation. Anderson had been at large for nearly two years since the discovery of Cairo's body.

Anderson is arraigned in Washington County Circuit Court in Indiana. She seeks to represent herself at trial, gives a different name in court, claims she is under NSA surveillance and has a Space Force detail following her, and submits dozens of handwritten motions filled with conspiracy theories. Judge Larry Medlock denies her self-representation motion and orders her to undergo psychiatric evaluation. Two doctors find her incompetent to stand trial. She is admitted to Logansport State Hospital for treatment.

Judge Medlock announces that Anderson has completed her psychiatric treatment at Logansport State Hospital and is now cooperating with her court-appointed attorney. She retracts all previous conspiracy-related statements and accusations against the judge and her attorney. A trial date is set for October 2025 in Indiana.

The October trial is delayed again by request. The Indiana case is handed over to the Jefferson County, Kentucky Commonwealth's Attorney's Office because the evidence spans both states. Jefferson County Prosecutor Tara Coats Hunt says the move ensures the strongest legal foundation and prevents future appeals. A Jefferson County grand jury indicts Anderson on charges of murder (domestic violence), first-degree manslaughter, first-degree criminal abuse of a child 12 or under, and abuse of a corpse. Anderson is arraigned in Jefferson County on December 15, 2025, and booked into Louisville Metro Corrections.

A pre-trial hearing scheduled for May 18, 2026 is pushed back to July 21 after Anderson's defense attorney states there is more than one terabyte of evidence in the case and she needs additional time to review it. Prosecutors have confirmed the discovery includes grand jury testimony, multiple police interviews containing incriminating statements, fingerprint analysis, autopsy results, police body camera footage, and witness statements. No trial date has been set as of the time of this writing.