Keiosha Felix’s mother was in prison and she was a ward of the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services (DCF) in 2012. She was living in Maison de Mere, a group home for teenage girls who are pregnant or have young children.
She got a weekend pass to visit her paternal aunt, Patricia Andrus, and was last seen leaving Andrus’s Duson, Louisiana home on April 30, 2012.
Keiosha was initially thought to be a runaway and her 19-year-old cousin, Portia Felix, claimed she’d heard from her and she was all right. She had run away once before, but only for two days.
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Keiosha frequently used her cellular phone and Facebook account prior to her disappearance, but neither of them have been active since she went missing. She also left behind her one-year-old daughter, and her loved ones don’t believe she would have abandoned the child.
In July 2012, three months after Keiosha was last seen, authorities charged Leon Wilkerson Jr. with rape and second-degree kidnapping in connection with her disappearance. Leon is Andrus’ boyfriend.
Andrus was charged with improper supervision of a minor and accessory to rape, and Portia was charged with obstruction of justice. Police determined she had lied when she said Keiosha got in touch with her after she vanished. Keiosha also allegedly told her aunt Wilkerson sexually assaulted her.
Andrus supposedly confronted Leon with the allegation and he denied it, so she didn’t report it to the police or the DCF. In August 2012, Leon’s brother Ronald Wilkerson was also charged with kidnapping in Keiosha’s case.
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The Duson Police Department was originally handling Keiosha’s case, with Lieutenant Gerald Credeur, the Assistant Chief of Police, in charge.
In September 2012, Credeur was removed from the investigation and suspended from duty, and in October he was terminated. He allegedly made two unlawful arrests in Keiosha’s disappearance, conducted illegal search and seizures and provided false testimony. The Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office took over the investigation.
After Credeur was taken off the case, all charges against the Wilkerson brothers and Keiosha’s aunt and cousin were dropped; the district attorney said the evidence against them was mostly “unsubstantiated hearsay.”
Authorities released surveillance images of a man in an AT&T store in Lafayette, Louisiana and asked for the public’s help in identifying him. They stated the individual wasn’t a suspect in Keiosha’s disappearance, but they believed he could have information in her case.
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He’s described as about 5’7 to 5’9 tall with a stocky build, and was wearing a white t-shirt and a rosary-type cross necklace. Photos of the man are posted with this case summary. He purchased a cellular phone SIM card at the store, and the card was later used with Keiosha’s password.
Investigators believe Keiosha is still alive, but could be in danger. She has frequented the Veazey area of Lafayette and may be in the Baton Rouge, Louisiana or Houston, Texas areas. She may be in the company of an adult male or an adult female.
Authorities are now focusing the investigation on finding Keiosha rather than filing criminal charges against anyone in her disappearance. Her case is classified as an endangered missing person and remains unsolved.
Investigating Agency: Lafayette Parish Sheriff’s Office 337-232-9211
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