A family member of slain mayoral candidate Marco McMillian on Monday said McMillian was beaten and burned.

McMillian's godfather, Carter Womack, told the AP that McMillian's family received the information from Coahoma County Coroner Scotty Meredith, who declined to comment.

An anonymous source confirmed that McMillian's body had some bruises and that at least one area on his body was burned.

Police have charged 22-year-old Lawrence Reed with the murder of McMillian, a 34-year-old openly gay Democrat campaigning for mayor of Clarksdale, Mississippi.

Officials from the Coahoma County Sheriff's Department announced on Wednesday that they had found McMillian's remains near the Mississippi River.

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 nowhere to be found.

McMillian, who graduated from Clarksdale High School in 1997, returned from Memphis to his hometown several months ago to run for mayor. He reportedly had big ideas for Clarksdale, a town of about 17,800 residents.