HOUSTON (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — A bond of $1 million has been set for the man accused of tampering with evidence, specifically a body, in the case of missing Houston girl, Maleah Davis. Derion Vence, 26, remained jailed Sunday after being arrested a day earlier. His next court appearance is set for Monday. Houston police said investigators have not found Maleah Davis and the investigation is continuing. Authorities have declined to say whether they believe Vence killed Maleah. But prosecutors said in court documents filed Saturday that Vence could face additional charges, including murder. Trained dogs detected the scent of human decomposition in Vence’s vehicle, according to a prosecutor. The investigation began after Vence told police that men in a truck on May 4 had abducted him, Maleah and his 2-year-old son a day earlier, but had freed him and the boy. Vence told investigators he was left in the Houston suburb of Sugar Land and walked to a hospital, where he reported the girl’s abduction. Sugar Land police, who initially interviewed him, said his story kept changing and didn’t add up. Vence, who had lived with Maleah and her mother, reported that his silver Nissan Altima was taken in the abduction, but surveillance video showed that vehicle was used to drop Vence off at the hospital. Police found the car Thursday. Dogs trained to find cadavers reacted to the trunk of the car, Pat Stayton, a prosecutor with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office, said at Vence’s probable cause court hearing Saturday night. Surveillance video from a neighbor showed Vence carrying a large, blue laundry basket with a large trash bag from his apartment on May 3, Stayton said. Vence returned three minutes later without the basket and later he was seen leaving the apartment with cleaning supplies, including bleach. In the silver Nissan, police found a laundry basket that looked like the one Vence took out of his apartment, Stayton said. “Both of the dogs reacted to the trunk of the silver Nissan that the defendant had driven and that the blue laundry basket was recovered from, indicating that the dogs were responding to the scent of human decomposition in the vehicle,” Stayton said. Investigators also found blood at the apartment, both in the hallway leading to the bathroom and on surfaces inside the bathroom, Stayton said. At Saturday night’s hearing, Vence said he planned to hire a defense attorney. Rodney Brown, an attorney appointed to represent Vence only for Saturday’s hearing, had asked a magistrate judge to set bond at $5,000, saying Vence was a low flight risk and had lived in Houston most of his life. Stayton argued that Vence was a flight risk and there was “evidence of deception on the part of the defendant with regard to information he gave to police.” Police have described Vence as Maleah’s stepfather, but Maleah’s mother, Brittany Bowens, said through a spokesman that Vence is her former fiance. Quanell X, a local civil rights activist who spoke to reporters on Bowens’ behalf on Friday, also said that Vence had abused Maleah. Child Protective Services removed Maleah and her brothers from the home Vence and Bowens shared in August after the girl suffered a head wound, but the children were returned in February, according to an agency spokeswoman. (© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)<doc-sep>A court date for Maleah Davis' mother's live-in boyfriend on Monday turned into a volatile scene as protesters chased the missing girl's mother out of the Houston courthouse and down the street, alleging that she was just as complicit in her daughter's possible death. Text HOUSTON to 77453 to get breaking news alerts by text | Sign up to receive breaking news alerts delivered to your email here. At least a dozen people, some bearing signs and T-shirts declaring "Justice for Maleah," had arrived for an initial court appearance for Derion Vence, the boyfriend accused of tampering with a human corpse in the four-year-old's disappearance. His court date was reset, but the protesters and reporters swarmed mother Brittany Bowens when she walked out of court with community activist Quanell X. CLUES: Police find blood linked to Maleah Davis in family's apartment Bowens stood back when Quanell X spoke, shaking as tears rolled down her cheeks. "The main thing right now that all of us want to know is, what did he do with Maleah?" Quanell X said. The protesters drowned out Quanell X as he spoke to reporters. "Why isn't she locked up?" one yelled. "She let it happen," another said, referencing Bowens' admissions on Friday that she knew Vence might have been abusing and molesting her daughter. After several minutes, Quanell X and Bowens walked down the hallway of the courthouse. Protesters followed, chanting, "Justice for Maleah!" Several people yelled while tailing the mother down the street. One person handed her a poster and hugged her. Bowens broke down crying. The mother had left Maleah and her other two children in Vence's care while she was out of state for a family member's funeral, Quanell X said. But on May 4, Vence reported Maleah missing and told police he had been knocked in-and-out of consciousness for nearly 24 hours while his stepdaughter was abducted. He said he was checking on a possible flat tire on the way to Bush Intercontinental Airport, where he was supposed to pick up his fiance, and was attacked by three men. He said he woke up after nearly a day later, regained consciousness and got a ride to the hospital with his 1-year-old son, who was still with him. In the days that have followed, police have tried grasping what really happened to the young girl, whose body hasn't been found. A camera attached to an upstairs neighbor's porch might have helped bring together pieces of the puzzle. The video caught Vence going in and out of their Alief-area apartment twice on May 3, once while carrying a heavy laundry basket packed with a large trash bag, documents show. Houston police said Vence left the home during the second trip with cleaning supplies, including a bottle of bleach. Drops of what may be Maleah's blood were found in the bathroom and a hallway leading to it at the apartment where she lived with her mother and Vence, according to court documents. Two police dogs also smelled the "scent of decomposition" in the silver Nissan Altima that Vence drove the night of Maleah's reported disappearance, the documents state. The car was located in a Missouri City parking lot with a gas can and a laundry basket in the trunk. And investigators found footage of Vence arriving at the hospital in the Altima, despite claiming not to know the whereabouts of the vehicle after the abduction, according to charging documents. MALEAH'S MISSING: Everything we know about the stepfather's arrest over the weekend Vence, 26, was arrested Saturday at a relative's home in Sugar Land after nearly a week of ignoring calls from police. He was held in lieu of posting $1 million bond, which has since been lowered to $45,000, according to court records. Vence's attorney, Tom Burton III, said he hasn't reviewed the evidence and is not yet prepared to speak about the case. Houston Police Department officials haven't said whether they believe Maleah is still alive. Texas EquuSearch crews have spent days searching near Vence's apartment while many residents across Houston remain captivated by the effort. Crystal Delmas, from the Cypress area, said she's been following Maleah's search through the local news and wanted to attend Vence's court hearing in support of the missing girl. Delmas held up two signs before the hearing was reset. Some of the writing read, "Justice for our princess" and "lock them up." "It's very heartbreaking," Delmas said. "She didn't have nobody." Tamisha Mendoza, who said she is the cousin of Maleah's biological father, questioned why officials allowed Maleah back into her mother's care earlier this year. She had been in state custody after an unexplained head injury. Mendoza said her cousin is still processing the situation. "His daughter has been ripped away from him," she said. samantha.ketterer@chron.com Twitter.com/sam_kett karen.warren@chron.com<doc-sep>
Derion Vence’s bail bond was lowered from $1 million to $45,000. His next court date is set for July 10. The mother of a missing 4-year-old Texas girl was heckled outside a courtroom on Monday by people who questioned if she had done enough to protect her daughter before her disappearance. Brittany Bowens, Maleah Davis’s mother, along with her spokesman, community activist Quanell X, showed up for a scheduled court hearing for Derion Vence, her former fiance who is charged in connection with the girl’s disappearance. The hearing was canceled, though, and Vence’s next hearing was scheduled for July 10. His attorney didn’t immediately reply to calls seeking comment. Vence, 26, has been charged with tampering with evidence, specifically a human corpse, though Maleah is still missing and authorities have declined to say whether they believe she is dead or Vence may have killed her. Initially, his bond was set at $1 million, but it was lowered to $45,000 on Monday, according to court records. Prosecutors, though, have said in court documents that Vence eventually could face additional charges, including murder. Bowens declined to speak after the canceled hearing, but Quanell X told reporters that Bowens is focused on finding out what happened to her daughter. “The main thing right now that all of us want to know is what did he do with Maleah,” he said. “Where is Maleah?” As Quanell X spoke to reporters, he was drowned out by a group of people, including some family members of Maleah’s father who yelled “she let it happen” and “Brittany knew all along.” Quanell X previously alleged that Vence might have abused Maleah and that Bowens should have told police about it. Child Protective Services removed Maleah and her brothers from the apartment Vence and Bowens shared in August after the girl suffered a head wound, but the children were returned in February, according to an agency spokeswoman. When asked by reporters why — if she had concerns about Vence — Bowens had left her daughter in Vence’s care while Bowens attended her father’s funeral out of state, Quanell X declined to comment, saying, “I’m not going to speak to that.” As Bowens and Quanell X headed to an elevator, they were followed by the hecklers, who yelled, “Justice for Maleah” and “murderer.” Tamisha Mendoza, a cousin of Maleah’s father, Craig Davis, said she questioned why Bowens stayed with Vence if she suspected he was hurting her daughter. “You’re just as guilty as (Vence). She needs to be locked up along with him,” Mendoza said. Craig Davis didn’t attend the scheduled hearing because “he is devastated” about what happened to his daughter, Mendoza said. “Maleah was a happy little girl,” she said. “The things that happened to her, she didn’t deserve.” According to police, Vence told officers that he, Maleah and his 2-year-old son were abducted on May 4 by a group of men in a truck. He said he and his son were freed the next day but the kidnappers kept Maleah and his silver Nissan Altima. Police said Vence’s story kept changing and didn’t add up. The Nissan was found on Thursday and trained dogs detected the scent of human decomposition in the trunk. Vence was seen on surveillance video taking a large laundry basket with a trash bag as well as cleaning supplies from his apartment on May 3. A basket similar to the one seen on the surveillance video was found in the Nissan’s trunk. Investigators also found blood in the hallway and bathroom of Bowens and Vence’s apartment. The blood is consistent with DNA samples taken from Maleah’s toothbrush, authorities said. Subscribe to Today in Houston Fill out the form below to subscribe our new daily editorial newsletter from the HPM Newsroom. Email* First Name Last Name * required