A Michigan mother and her adult son are facing serious charges in relation to his girlfriend’s death. Jalen and Charla Pendergrass have been accused by police of murdering Jalen’s teenage girlfriend, London Thomas. The girl reportedly disappeared after being dropped off at his house, never to be seen alive again. Several weeks later, her body was found in an SUV. After months of investigation, authorities have finally been able to press charges. Currently, the only unknown is the motive.
On the morning of October 17, 2025, Jalen Pendergrass, 23, and his mother, 49-year-old Charla Pendergrass, were each charged with second-degree murder and conspiracy to tamper with evidence in connection with the death of London Thomas, CBS News reported. The murder charge has a penalty of life in prison, while the conspiracy charge can carry up to 10 years in prison. Both have pleaded not guilty.
Jalen Pendergrass was denied bond, while Charla Pendergrass was given a $5 million bond. A probable cause conference is scheduled for October 22.
“I’m so angry and I’m so happy and satisfied at the same time,” London Thomas’ father, Cedric Salisbury said after the arraignment, per CBS News. “We all knew that they were pretty much responsible for what happened, so now we’re moving forward and moving in the right direction, going for justice for London.”
London Thomas was last seen around 4 a.m. April 5 in Inkster, Michigan. When she didn’t come home the following day, the 17-year-old girl’s family filed a missing person’s report. She had allegedly been dropped off at Jalen Pendergrass’ house before she went missing, WXYZ reported.
Inkster police, Detroit police, Michigan State Police, and the FBI worked together to investigate Thomas’ disappearance. Her body was found on April 26 in a parked SUV. The vehicle had allegedly been parked for about two weeks.
According to prosecutors, a male friend of Charla Pendergrass contacted Inkster police on April 26. He told prosecutors that she called him, asking him to transport a sealed plastic bin, WXYZ reported. The man put the bin in an SUV on April 11. It was 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,” Wayne County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Dominic Degrazia said.
“The evidence shows that Defendants Jaylen and Charla Pendergrass allegedly committed the homicide of Ms. London Thomas,” prosecutors said, WXYZ reported.
Michigan State Police were the ones to identify the remains found in the SUV as those belonging to London Thomas, People reported. The medical examiner later determined her cause of death to be asphyxia, and the manner of death to be homicide.
At the time, Jalen and Charla Pendergrass were questioned and briefly detained by police. However, they weren’t formally charged.
“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,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy shared in a statement, per People.
“As a result of that work, we have been able to charge and bring the perpetrators of this cruel and deadly crime to justice,” the statement added.
