The man behind bars in connection with the disappearance and death of 4-year-old Houston girl Maleah Davis claims he never harmed her.
During a jailhouse interview on Tuesday with ABC13’s Chauncy Glover, a reported teary-eyed and emotional 27-year-old Derion Vence, currently in isolation at the Houston jail for his own protection, denied killing Maleah. Authorities found the child’s remains in Arkansas on May 31, over 300 miles away from the Houston apartment she lived in with Vence and her mother, Brittany Bowens.
“I ain’t no killer, bro. Chauncy, I loved Maleah so much. I did for her more than her own parents. I never had a biological daughter. I would never do anything to hurt her. That’s not me. Ask anyone who knows me, and they’ll tell you I’m not that type of dude and I was good with the kids.”
When questioned about what happened to the little girl, Vence reportedly said he wasn’t comfortable talking about that without his lawyer present, but claimed “nothing bad” happened to Maleah and that she didn’t suffer.
Vence also denied being gay, something that Maleah’s mother, Brittany Bowens, allegedly accused him of. He also denied that Bowens tried to contact him, stating that he himself tried to reach out to her several times but she didn’t respond.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, community activist Quanell X, who also spoke with Vence, said he managed to elicit a confession from the suspect. Vence reportedly told Quanell that he dumped Maleah’s remains off of the side of a road, claiming that her death was an accident.
Police arrested Vence on May 11 after they found blood evidence inside his Houston apartment that matched to the little girl, and after cadaver dogs picked up on possible human decomposition scents inside the trunk of his car.
Vence reported Maleah missing on May 4, but his story about three Hispanic men hitting him over the head before abducting Maleah never sat right with authorities. Bowens was out of state attending a funeral when her daughter vanished.
According to Quanell, Vence told him what happened prior to Maleah’s death that may have brought about the traumatic incident.
“He felt like he was just totally overwhelmed because Brittany wasn’t being the mother she should be being,” Quanell said of Vence. “He took care of the kids; 90% of the time Brittany was not there…He felt she was not fit as a mother…He felt overwhelmed with his responsibility to Maleah in particular.”
Vence also allegedly told Quanell that he put Maleah in a trash bag before he drove a little over five hours from Houston to Arkansas.
A cleaning crew picking up litter in Fulton, Arkansas, found a black trash bag emitting a foul odor along Interstate 30, three days prior to Vence’s alleged confession. The crew’s supervisor reportedly told them to leave the bag alone and reported the incident, but at the time, according to Chron, the crew thought the bag may have contained a dead animal.
A few days later, a maintenance crew mowing the area accidentally ran over the same bag with a lawnmower. Officials arrived at the scene and determined that the scattered remains were of a child. Authorities found clothing and jewelry at the scene that led them to believe they had found Maleah.
Officials later announced that the remains found were of Maleah.
Vence, however, who told ABC 13 he hasn’t slept or eaten since his arrival to jail, insisted that there is more to the story and that he never harmed the girl. Chauncey indicated that Vence was “very emotional” during the interview, while Quanell on the other hand, said Vence showed no remorse or feelings at all during their interview.
“I should be home with my family. With Maleah, the kids and Brittany, cooking dinner and watching Netflix,” Vence told Chauncey.
So far, no one has been charged with murder in connection with Maleah’s death.
Meanwhile, Houston Police Department Chief Art Acevedo previously said that Vence has lied since the beginning of the case, starting when he reported her missing and made up an outlandish abduction tale.
“You could drive a big rig right through the tales this guy has been telling,” Acevedo said last month.
The story continues to develop. Check back with CrimeOnline as additional details become available.
[Feature Photo: Maleah Davis/Handout]
