A man has been arrested in the death of Tasia Fortune, the 29-year-old Black woman who was found hanging from a tree in Mississippi last month, police announced Friday. Jacques Ratliff was arrested Friday afternoon and will be charged with murder, Jackson Police Chief RaShall Brackney told reporters. She said he had a “partnership” with Fortune, but did not reveal what type. Fortune’s body was discovered on August 3 behind an abandoned building in Jackson. His family had previously said they did not believe Fortune had committed suicide. The case sparked widespread alarm and media attention given Mississippi’s sordid history of racial violence. His death was officially classified as a homicide Thursday night, Brackney said. That determination led police to obtain two search warrants and an arrest warrant for Ratliff, he said. Leaves reflect the glass of Tasia Fortune’s photograph at a makeshift memorial on August 10 in Jackson, Miss. File Sophie Bates/AP Investigators served search warrants on Friday, but Ratliff was not found at the scene. Officers returning to headquarters later found him walking on Capitol Street and detained him, Brackney said. “Today’s arrest is an important development in this investigation, but it is not the conclusion. This case remains active and additional arrests will be pending as our investigators continue to follow the evidence wherever it leads,” he said, adding, “because Tasia and her children deserve no less.” It is not immediately clear if Ratliff has retained an attorney. Brackney said the Fortune family was immediately notified of the arrest. While Fortune’s death has been ruled a homicide, Brackney, who was cautious in describing Fortune as found “in a hanging position,” did not elaborate on determining the cause of death. The chief acknowledged the scrutiny of the case, saying, “We understand the questions and the desire for answers given Mississippi’s history,” but emphasized that the case must be based on evidence and facts.
