SELLERSBURG, Ind. — A young boy found dead inside a suitcase in rural southern Indiana last spring has been identified as Cairo Ammar Jordan, Indiana State Police said Wednesday.


What You Need To Know

  • Indiana State Police identified a young boy who was found dead inside a suitcase in southern Indiana

  • Two suspects have been made identified in the case, and one was the boy’s mother

  • The boy’s body was found in rural Washington County, Indiana, last spring. An autopsy revealed he died from an electrolyte imbalance caused by vomiting and diarrhea

  • Jordan's mother, Dejaune Ludie Anderson, is wanted for murder in the case

  • Anderson repeatedly called her son a demon and referred to exorcism, hexes and curses in posts to her public social media accounts, affidavit documents revealed

Jordan’s body was discovered by a mushroom hunter in Washington County on April 16, police said. Investigators described the boy as Black, roughly 4 feet tall, and slim with short hair. His body was shoved inside a suitcase, which bore a distinctive Las Vegas design on its front and back. 

The body of a little boy was found inside this suitcase in a wooded area in Washington County, Indiana earlier this year. (Indiana State Police)

Indiana police pulled two sets of fingerprints from the suitcase and they were traced to two suspects, one being the boy's mother.

Dawn Elaine Coleman, 40 from Shreveport, Louisiana, was arrested in California on Oct. 14, police said Wednesday.

Dejaune Ludie Anderson, 37, of Atlanta, Georgia, is the mother of Jordan. Police described her as a Black woman, 5-foot-5, 130 lbs with short dark brown hair. Dawn Coleman’s relation to the boy or the mother is not currently known.

There is currently an arrest warrant out for murder for Anderson, as police have established probable cause for murder in the investigation.

The boy’s identity was also revealed Wednesday. His name was Cairo Ammar Jordan from Atlanta, Georgia. Police said he would’ve turned 6 this past Monday.

Anderson was arrested by Louisville Metro Police for robbery weeks before her son went missing, Sgt. Carey Huls said. 

Indiana State Police hold up a picture of Dejaune Anderson, mother of Cairo Jordan, who was found dead in a suitcase. She is wanted for murder and also faces charges of neglect and obstruction of justice. (Spectrum News 1/Erin Wilson)

In a probable cause affadavit filed in Washington County, police revealed Facebook messages sent from Anderson's account from Dec. 2021 through shortly after Jordan's death pertaining to "reversal spells, exorcism, and Hex/Curse." Many times, Anderson refers to her child as a "demon."

Other messages and posts to her public Facebook account were detailed, where Anderson said she had to "do some healing and killing." Anderson also claimed to have "survived the death attacks" from her son, adding that she'd been able to "weaken his powers through our blood."

"I have his real name and he is 100 years old," Anderson wrote on her public Twitter account, according to the affidavit.

On March 18, 2022, Anderson allegedly posted: "Can't wait to tell this story. About the exorcism. A book about living with a demonic child. And a podcast."

Anderson got out of custody in Louisville on bail, and a bench warrant was issued for her failure to appear for a preliminary hearing on May 25. The day Cairo was found, a vehicle associated with Anderson was spotted on a RiverLink plate camera traveling from southern Indiana to Louisville just after 8 p.m.

Online court documents do not list an attorney who could speak on behalf of Coleman, who is expected to be transported to Indiana within about a month, Huls said.

Indiana's online court records do not reflect a murder charge against Anderson, and it is unclear if she has an attorney who could speak on her behalf.

The Washington County Prosecutor’s office declined Wednesday to discuss the status of the murder charge against Anderson.

Huls said the prosecutor's office obtained an arrest warrant on a murder charge for Anderson from a judge Tuesday based on an affidavit that would be released once Anderson is in custody.

The investigation is ongoing, and police are seeking help with locating Anderson. Authorities believe she's on the run in California. Anyone with information regarding this case, especially information on Anderson's whereabouts, is asked to call 911 or the nationwide toll-free tip line at 1-888-437-6432.