DETROIT (WXYZ) — A mother and son have been charged in connection with the murder of Detroit teen London Thomas.
Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy charged 23-year-old Jalen Pendergrass of Inkster and 49-year-old Charla Pendergrass of Clawson in connection with Thomas' killing.
Watch Randy Wimbley's video report below:
Both were arraigned on the charges on Friday. Jalen was remanded to jail, and Charla was given a $5 million cash bond. A probable cause conference is scheduled for Oct. 22.
According to the prosecutor's office, both Jalen and Charla Pendergrass are in custody and charged each with second-degree murder and tampering with evidence.
"Just so happy and praise for this moment because it's long overdue," Thomas' father, Cedric Salisbury, said. "We all knew that they did something and we're just happy that the light has been shone, and thankful."
Watch the full arraignment in the video below
Prosecutors say that Thomas was Jalen Pendergrass' girlfriend.
"I want justice for my granddaughter. I want them to get the maximum penalty they can get for my granddaughter, " said Jestina Martin, Thomas' grandmother.
Watch our previous coverage when Jalen and Charla Pendergrass were charged:
On April 5, prosecutors say Thomas was reported missing to the Inkster Police Department. She was last seen around 4 a.m. when she was allegedly dropped off at Jalen Pendergrass' house.
Inkster police, Detroit police, the FBI and Michigan State Police began investigating, and on April 26, Thomas' body was found in an SUV in Southfield that had reportedly been parked there for two weeks.
Watch below: Family says body of missing teen London Thomas has been found
Prosecutors said that a male friend of Charla Pendergrass contacted Inkster police on April 26. He told prosecutors that Charla Pendergrass called him and asked him to transport a sealed plastic bin.
Police say that he received and placed the bin in an SUV on Millard Street in Southfield on April 11, the same SUV where Thomas' body was found.
"This is a case where the evidence, I believe, will be abundant that both defendants — but in particular Ms. Charla Pendergrass — engaged in an extended campaign to lie to the police, lie to law enforcement to cover up her actions," said Dominic Degrazia, Wayne County assistant prosecuting attorney.
Watch below: Grandmother of London Thomas speaks days after London's body was found
"The evidence shows that Defendants Jaylen and Charla Pendergrass allegedly committed the homicide of Ms. London Thomas," prosecutors said when the charges were announced.
“I am proud of the excellent work that has been done in this case. It has taken countless hours of investigation, and diligent work by the Michigan State Police, the Detroit Police Department, and the FBI. As a result of that work, we have been able to charge and bring the perpetrators of this cruel and deadly crime to justice,” Worthy said in a statement.
Jalen Pendergrass was arrested and charged in connection to a previous case, and Charla Pendergrass was previously arrested on charges of lying to a peace officer, but those charges were later dismissed.
Watch below: Boyfriend of London Thomas arrested in unrelated case
Hopefully they did a thorough investigation and maybe that's why it took so long and we can move forward and wrap this up so my daughter can rest in peace now," Salisbury said.
"I don't sleep good at night since this happened 'cause I've been praying for justice," Martin said. "I miss her so much. I miss talking to my grandbaby because she always called me and was like grandma I love you, and I miss her. I got her pictured all over my house."
Their attorneys say both maintain their innocence and are expected to plead not guilty.
“While it seems so many have wrested judgment and already arrived at the conclusion that he (Jalen) is responsible and that he’s the killer, I hope people will let the evidence play itself out and respect the process," Jalen Pendergrass' attorney Adam Clements said.
"Sounds like the same recycled case from April when they couldn't prove anything then and I don't believe they will be able to prove anything now," Carla's attorney Terry L. Johnson said. "We've gone through this twice. We started out in this court, it was dismissed. We went out to Romulus, it was dismissed. And this case, we believe, at the end of the day, our clients will be shown to a jury to be not guilty."
