Officials on Wednesday announced they
had found the body of Marco McMillian, a mayoral candidate for the
city of Clarksdale, Mississippi who had been missing since Tuesday.
At a news conference, officials from
the Coahoma County Sheriff's Department said the body was found
around 8:30AM on Wednesday near the Mississippi River.
While sheriff's officials refused to
name a person of interest who has been taken into custody, various
media reported that Lawrence Reed, a 22-year-old from Clarksdale, is
being questioned in connection with McMillian's death.
“Our hearts go out to the family and
friends of Marco McMillian, one of the 1st viable openly
LGBT candidates in Mississippi,” tweeted the Victory Fund, which
supports LGBT elected officials.
Jarod Keith, McMillian's campaign
spokesman, remembered McMillian in a statement.
“We remember Marco as a bold and
passionate public servant, whose faith informed every aspect of his
life,” Keith
wrote. “Tragically, that life has been cut short.”
The search for McMillian began after
his SUV collided head-on with another vehicle on Tuesday morning.
Reed was driving the SUV and McMillian was not in the SUV.
McMillian, who graduated from
Clarksdale High School in 1997, returned from Memphis to his hometown
several months ago to run for mayor.