Jefferson St. Body Dump Defendant Appears In Court

JOLIET, IL - Last month's mysterious violent crime on Joliet's west side ended with Will County Sheriff's detectives traveling to North Carolina to announce the arrest of 24-year-old Deiontae Shawnrico McMillian. He's been charged in Will County in the death of 22-year-old dancer Danica Ford. Her body was later found in a secluded wooded area off West Jefferson Street near the Woodlawn Cemetery property.

McMillian, a Will County criminal complaint filed on Nov. 21 states, had "knowledge that Danica Ford died by homicidal means, knowingly concealed the death of Danica Ford by placing her in a hole on property located north of Jefferson Street and east of Houbolt Road and west of Essington Road in Joliet, Will County, Illinois."

Last month, Will County Sheriff's officials announced McMillian, a resident of Fayetteville, North Carolina, would be extradited back to Illinois to face felony charges in Will County related to Ford's case. However, sheriff's officials do not believe that she was killed in the Joliet area. The woman from Concord, North Carolina, had been in the Schaumburg area in the months before she was killed.

RELATED: Dancer's Slaying Leads Sheriff's Police To North Carolina

"McMillian left North Carolina and came to Illinois and worked that job for a very short period. Ford eventually came to Illinois where the couple moved from hotel to hotel, while Ford also worked as a dancer and hair stylist. Detectives believe it was at this time, that McMillian and Ford began having domestic problems where he ultimately killed her and discarded her body in the woods in Joliet Township," Will County Sheriff's officials announced on Nov. 22.

At 12:55 p.m. on Saturday, McMillian was admitted as a new prisoner at the Will County Jail. He will likely remain in Will County's custody for quite a while.

On Monday, the man charged with concealing a homicidal death appeared before a Will County judge. McMillian, court records showed, has hired private defense counsel to represent his interests in Will County. The steep $2 million bail that was set at the time of last month's bench warrant will also remain in place.

In short, McMillian must come up with $200,000 cash to post bond at Will County's jail. It remains to be seen whether authorities in other neighboring counties, such as Cook County, decide to bring first-degree murder charges against McMillian for Ford's death.

Mugshot of Deiontae Shawnrico McMillian via Will County Sheriff