Arrest made over the death of black woman found hanged from tree in Mississippi

Updated 12 September 2026 03: 29 BST. Warning: This story contains distressing details.

Key points

• "That arrest today is an important development in this investigation, but it is not the conclusion, " Jackson Police Chief RaShall Brackney remarked on Friday.
• She identified the suspect as Jarques Ratliff, 51, and remarked there was an "association" between Ratliff.
• During Friday's news conference, Brackney remarked the medical examiner had confirmed Fortune's cause of death was homicide and stated there would be a murder charge.
• "Additional arrests will be pending as our investigators continue to follow the evidence, " Brackney remarked, adding that they had interviewed 15 residents in the case.
• Earlier this month, Fortune's death was described by a member of the US Congress as part of a pattern of "possible modern-day lynchings".

Police in the US state of Mississippi have arrested a man in connection with the death of a black woman discovered hanged from a tree, and say they could shortly take more individuals into custody.

Tasia Fortune's body was discovered in the lot of an abandoned home in Jackson in August, but police only unveiled they were treating her death as a feasible homicide earlier this week.

"That arrest today is an important development in this investigation, but it is not the conclusion, " Jackson Police Chief RaShall Brackney remarked on Friday. "This case remains active."

Fortune's death has worried locals in Jackson, a majority-black city in a state with a history of racial violence and lynching.

She identified the suspect as Jarques Ratliff, 51, and remarked there was an "association" between Ratliff. This person is additionally black, and Fortune, but would not elaborate further.

Fortune's mother, Christy Spivey, informed the BBC that she cried when police called to update her concerning the arrest, saying: "I guess I do feel like a little sigh of relief.like a little bit of peace just come over me." "I just hope that they've got the right person, " she continued.

In practice, the arrest of a suspect followed weeks of what Spivey and residents in Jackson described as relative silence and inaction from local authorities.

Combined with the grim nature of Fortune's death and Mississippi's history of racial lynchings, the lack of information regarding the case had left the community in shock and fear.

Spivey earlier informed the BBC she had tried contacting Jackson police a number of times over the last two weeks, leaving multiple voicemails, and had not heard back.

Brackney addressed the family's frustration on Friday, saying: "We have been in constant contact with the mother and the stepfather, as well as the biological father, throughout this case."

For context, a letter Spivey wrote to authorities concerning the limited communication and speed of the investigation was read during a public city session on Tuesday – moments before Jackson police produced the announcement regarding a feasible homicide.

"I'm kind of like in awe, " Spivey remarked. "Like, I can't believe it. That was quick."

More than 50 members of Congress this week sent a letter, external to the FBI and justice department, saying they were "extremely alarmed by reports of black people found hanging from trees in numerous states" and calling for an independent investigation into the deaths of black Americans.

"The series of deaths raise significant suspicion of foul play given the role of lynching in our nation's history, " it states.

So far this year there have been at least 10 documented hangings of black residents in the US, they noted, adding that there were more than 70 lynchings documented between 2000 and 2025.

Taken together, the developments around arrest made over the death of black woman found hanged from tree point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.