The Disappearance of Deundrea Ford: Suspect Charged with Murder

Updated January 14, 2024; Posted January 14, 2024

Yoland Washington, a 51-year-old individual, has been arrested and charged with murder in connection to the disturbing disappearance of 21-year-old Deundrea Ford.

Ford was last seen leaving her workplace in Houston, Texas on September 22, 2023, accompanied by an unidentified male. Subsequent investigations have identified this male as Yoland Washington, who has a history of violence against women based on court documents.

Currently, Washington is being held in the Dallas County Jail.

The Disappearance of Deundrea Ford

Born on October 24, 2001, Deundrea Ford is a 21-year-old woman and a mother to a four-year-old son.

At the time of her disappearance, Ford had been employed as a dancer at Diva’s Bikini Sports Bar & Grill in east Houston for approximately two weeks.

On September 21, 2023, a family member dropped Ford off at the bikini bar located in the 11900 block of East Freeway in Houston. She mentioned to her ride home that someone else would be picking her up.

She was last seen leaving the bar in the early morning hours, getting into a white van with an unknown male.

Deundrea has not been seen or heard from since, prompting her family to report her missing to the Houston Police Department.

Investigation and New Details

On September 22, 2023, one of Ford’s friends missed a call from her around 2 am. Shortly after, Ford’s phone was turned off, and all calls were redirected to voicemail.

Surveillance footage from the bar revealed that Ford left with an unidentified male and entered a white GMC Savana van in the parking lot between 1 and 2 am. They remained inside the van for over an hour before driving away. It is unclear whether Ford willingly left with the male.

According to Ford’s uncle, the unknown male was observed buying her drinks earlier that evening and interacting with other women inside the bar who appeared to know him.

Although a suspect was briefly detained in another state regarding Ford’s disappearance, he was later released, and his identity remains unknown.

The sudden disappearance of Deundrea Ford raised concerns for her family, as it was uncharacteristic of her to vanish without contacting her young son.

In October 2023, it was revealed that Ford was a witness in a capital murder case. Court documents indicated her presence in a car when 35-year-old Otis Parker was fatally shot on May 18, 2023.

Following this revelation, all four defendants involved in the capital murder case were issued a no-contact order, prohibiting them from contacting or approaching Deundrea. One of the defendants was killed by the police on July 12 while being served a murder warrant, but the remaining three are currently incarcerated without bond.

While it remains uncertain if the shooting incident is directly connected to Deundrea’s disappearance, there were documented threats against her life filed by at least one of the defendants.

The Houston Police Department continues to investigate Ford’s disappearance, describing the case as “open and active pending further investigation.”

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