JACKSON, United States — Mississippi police arrested Jarques Ratliff on Friday, September 11, 2026, and charged him with murder in the death of Tasia Fortune.
The 29-year-old Black woman was found hanging from a tree outside an abandoned house in Jackson last month.
The arrest came after the state medical examiner classified Fortune’s death as a homicide. Police said the finding allowed investigators to obtain a murder warrant.
Officials have not released the autopsy report, identified the precise cause of death, or disclosed how they believe Fortune was killed.
Police Describe an Association
Police Chief RaShall Brackney said investigators had established an “association” between Ratliff, 51, and Fortune through interviews and forensic evidence.
She declined to describe their relationship, saying further disclosures could undermine the continuing investigation.
Officers interviewed nearly 15 people and secured two search warrants as the inquiry progressed, Brackney said.
When police did not find Ratliff at the location covered by the warrants, officers later encountered him walking along a Jackson street and arrested him.
The medical examiner’s decision was an essential step because police could not obtain a murder warrant before Fortune’s death was officially classified as a homicide, Brackney said.
Authorities have not announced a possible motive.
Brackney said investigators expected further arrests, but she did not identify any additional suspects or disclose what roles other people may have played.
“This is not closure,” Brackney said. “This is just one step as we continue to investigate this case.”
It was not immediately clear when police announced the charge whether Ratliff had retained a lawyer.
A Mother’s Response
Fortune’s mother, Christy Spivey, said she cried and thanked investigators after being told about the arrest.
She told The Associated Press that she did not know Ratliff and had begun asking her daughter’s friends whether they recognised him.
Spivey had maintained that her daughter would not have died by suicide.
Fortune was the mother of four children and had experienced homelessness in recent years, according to her mother.
Police found her body on August 3 behind an abandoned house.
Brackney said Fortune was in a hanging position and that her body was in varying stages of decomposition.
The circumstances prompted questions within Fortune’s family and the wider Jackson community.
Brackney said investigators were limiting public disclosures to details supported by evidence.
Other Mississippi Deaths
Fortune’s death occurred less than a year after two other people were found hanging from trees in Mississippi.
Trey Reed, a 21-year-old Black student at Delta State University, was found dead in Cleveland.
Cory Zukatis, an unhoused white man in his 30s, was found in Vicksburg. Authorities classified both deaths as suicides.
Asked whether the cases might be connected, Brackney declined to make such a determination.
She said the Federal Bureau of Investigation would be responsible for assessing any possible relationship among them, while Jackson police were treating Fortune’s death as a local homicide investigation.
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Alternative Headlines
- Mississippi Police Arrest Man in Tasia Fortune Homicide
- Homicide Ruling Leads to Murder Charge in Tasia Fortune Case
- Man Arrested in Death of Mississippi Woman Found Hanging From Tree
- Jackson Police Expect Further Arrests in Tasia Fortune Investigation
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Medical Examiner’s Finding Advances Inquiry Into Tasia Fortune’s Death
