Black Man Found Hanging From Tree in Miss. Reportedly Robbed and Murdered Woman in 1980: Report

By Stephen A. Crockett Jr., theRoot

The body of a black man believed to be Otis Byrd was found hanging from a tree. Byrd served 25 years in prison for reportedly robbing and killing a woman.

On March 2 a friend dropped off Otis Byrd at the Riverwalk Casino in Vicksburg, Miss. On March 8, members of the Byrd family reported the 54-year-old missing. On Thursday, Claiborne County, Miss., authorities found a man’s body, believed to be Byrd’s, hanged from a tree by a bed sheet, causing many in the area to wonder whether the hanging was a homicide and, if so, whether it could be retaliation for a killing some 25 years ago.

Authorities have not confirmed the man’s identity, but the Claiborne County NAACP and family members have said that it was Byrd

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FBI Supervisory Special Agent Jason Pack told CNN that the man’s hands were not bound and that he was wearing a skull cap. It’s unclear whether the hanging was a suicide or a homicide. “We don’t know what happened out there—if it is a suicide, a homicide. That is why we investigate these types of cases to determine exactly what happened,” he said.

The Byrd family and the state NAACP are calling for a full investigation into the death. “Considering Mr. Byrd’s body was found hanging from a tree, we are calling on federal authorities to immediately investigate to determine whether his death is a result of a racial hate crime,” Derrick Johnson, president of the Mississippi NAACP, told the Clarion-Ledger…

“The sheriff’s department contacted the [Mississippi Bureau of Investigation] and FBI for forensic and investigative assistance. Investigators are currently processing the scene for evidence to determine the cause and manner of death,” according to the FBI.

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