Yoland Washington; Deundrea Ford.Photo:Houston Police/X
Houston Police/X
A Texas man has been arrested in connection with the disappearance and presumed death of a young mother who went missing in September, police said.
Yoland Washington, 51, was arrested and charged with murder in the disappearance and death of Deundra Ford, 22, who was last seen in Houston on Sept. 22, 2023, the Houston Police Department (HPD) announced in a news release.
Washington is being held at the Dallas County Jail on an unrelated charge.
On Sept. 22, 2023, Ford left work with an unknown male in a white Ford Transit van, HPD Homicide Division Sergeant R. Montalvo and Detective D. Higgs said in the release.
She had reportedly been working as a dancer at Diva’s Bikini Sports Bar & Grill in Houston for several weeks, local stationsKHOU 11andFox 26report.
Unable to reach Ford on September 23, her family reported her missing.
“I’m confident that something’s not right,” Ford’s uncle, Kevin Carriere, told KHOU 11. “This is not her normal behavior.”
The HPD Missing Persons Unit and the HPD Homicide Division launched an investigation, which, per the release, “identified Washington as the suspect in this case and he was linked to Ford’s death.”
Washington allegedly told police that he met Ford inside the club and gave her a ride in his van, per Click2Houston.
The publication also noted that court documents reveal investigators allegedly found Ford’s clothing inside the van with apparent blood stains. A combination of DNA from both Ford and Washington’s was identified on three of the stains on her clothing.
A chemical they used inside the van allegedly showed blood stains in the middle and back of the van, court documents state, per Click2Houston.
In the affidavit, the gunman was identified as Jamal Brown, 21, and his accomplices as Mariah Green, 23, and Quitiana Taylor, 21, along with Jarrell Wheeler, 22.
All four suspectsin connection with the initial murder casewere charged in June with capital murder in connection with Parker’s shooting death, police said in aseparate release.Brown, Taylor and Green were additionally charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
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Washington was arrested in Dallas on an unrelated charge and he remains in the Dallas County Jail awaiting extradition to Harris County. It is unclear whether he has retained an attorney who can speak on his behalf.
Anyone with information regarding this case is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or speak anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.
source: people.com
