Story Update: Boy Found Dead In Suitcase Finally Identified

After a grueling 6 months for investigators has passed, the boy found dead inside a suitcase in rural Washington County, Indiana State Police have finally been able to identify the young victim. 

According to statement released by the Indiana State Police, the child was 5-year-old Cairo Ammar Jordan from Atlanta, Georgia. Cairo would have turned 6 on Monday.

Authorities with the Georgia Bureau of Investigations assisted in locating and contacting Cairo’s biological father after investigators were able to confirm the child was Cairo.

The investigation led police to identify two suspects, Dawn Elaine Coleman, 40, of Shreveport, Louisiana, and Dejaune Ludie Anderson, 37, of Atlanta, Georgia.

Arrest warrants were quickly issued for both suspects and Coleman was apprehended by authorities in California. However, the police have not been able to locate Anderson.

Authorities also said that Anderson is Cairo’s biological mother.

Though the child was unable to be identified when he was originally found, medical examiners were able to determine his cause of death.

The child died as a result of an electrolyte imbalance likely caused by viral gastroenteritis, per a toxicology and autopsy report. The child’s blood toxicology was negative and there was no physical trauma to the body.

Police stated, “There was an absence of significant traumatic injuries. This led us to believe there was no anatomical cause of death.”

Little Cairo’s body had been found in a hard-case “Las Vegas-themed” suitcase, and he was described as a Black male, approximately 4 ft. tall, with a slender build and short haircut.

The body was found by someone hunting for mushrooms around a wooded area.

The suitcase was located approximately 80 ft. off Holder Road in a heavily wooded area of eastern Washington County, which is located in southern Indiana, police added. They believe based on the autopsy report that the child was already dead when placed into the suitcase.