Dejaune Anderson, the mother of a 5-year-old Atlanta boy whose body was discovered in a suitcase in Indiana in 2022, was denied bond during her initial court appearance on Tuesday. Charged with murder, neglect, and obstruction of justice in the death of Cairo Ammar Jordan, Anderson claimed during the hearing that she had been under federal surveillance for months prior to her arrest.
Anderson’s arrest came after nearly two years on the run, with U.S. Marshals apprehending her in California. During the court proceedings, Anderson made unusual claims about being under NSA surveillance for eight months and having a detail from the Space Force monitoring her movements. However, Judge Larry Medlock rejected her request for bond, stating that the issue could be revisited if corroborated by Space Force officials.
In a bizarre exchange, Anderson initially identified herself with a name beginning with “Princess” and expressed her desire to represent herself. However, Judge Medlock appointed someone from the public defender’s office to represent her, overriding her request.
Anderson is scheduled to appear in court again on April 25, with a tentative trial date set for August. The autopsy revealed that Cairo died from vomiting and diarrhea leading to dehydration, indicating that he had passed away about a week before being discovered by a mushroom hunter in a wooded area northwest of Louisville, Kentucky.
In November, another woman charged in connection with the case, Dawn Coleman of Shreveport, Louisiana, reached a plea deal with prosecutors. Coleman pleaded guilty to charges including aiding, inducing, or causing murder, resulting in a 30-year prison sentence with five years suspended to probation.