It was a significant day Tuesday in the case of the murder of Eastpointe teen Zion Foster as her cousin Jaylin Brazier appeared in court for a preliminary hearing.
Brazier was charged with murder as her remains still have not been found.
Foster was last seen on Jan. 4, 2022, and months later, on May 12, Detroit police announced that they’d be searching a landfill in hopes of finding her remains.
Then on June 14, 2023, Brazier was charged with her murder. During his court appearance, he was seen sitting quietly and mild-mannered.
But his voice loomed large as prosecutors showed police body camera footage of Braizer in the early hours of Foster’s disappearance.
Police arrived at his home searching for his cousin because police traced her phone directly to that location.
Brazier could be heard trying to joke with the officers as he and his mother suggested that Foster was likely with a boyfriend more than once.
Brazier later told police that she was with him, and the two had been smoking marijuana together when she suddenly died, causing him to panic before he threw her body in a dumpster.
Months later, DPD moved to search a landfill for Foster, but nothing was uncovered.
In those early hours with Foster being gone, he told police he was not with his cousin.
Brazier has not been convicted of anything but has been charged with the murder of his cousin.