Police have announced the arrest of a suspect linked to the death of Tasia Fortune, one month after the Black victim was found hanging from a tree outside an abandoned building in Mississippi, United States.

Jackson police chief RaShall Brackney identified the suspect as 51-year-old Jarques Ratliff at a media briefing on Friday, where he said the police had secured warrants to arrest and search his house.

“That arrest today is an important development in this investigation, but it is not the conclusion,” Mr Brackney said. “This case remains active.”

Mr Brackney further disclosed that a medical examiner determined the case to be a homicide, adding that murder charges would be filed.

He said the investigation might lead to more arrests, noting that 15 individuals had been questioned about the homicide. 

“Additional arrests will be pending as our investigators continue to follow the evidence,” Mr Brackney said, adding that they had interviewed 15 people in the case.

No fewer than 50 members of Congress wrote to the FBI on Tuesday expressing concern over “reports of Black people found hanging from trees in numerous states throughout our country.”

“The series of deaths raises significant suspicion of foul play given the role of lynching in our nation’s history. Therefore, we write to urgently demand a thorough, transparent, and comprehensive federal investigation into every hanging death of a Black individual across the United States,” the letter signed by more than 50 lawmakers said.