After reports surfaced that someone leaked a photo of a necklace that allegedly belonged to Jimmie “Jay” Lee to a reporter as a way of proving that the body found in Carroll County could be the missing Ole Miss student, Carroll County Sheriff Clint Walker released a statement to the media.
“The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office is aware of misleading information that has been reported by a member of the press… At no time, whatsoever, has Sheriff Walker, nor any member of the CCSO confirmed that a picture of a necklace has in any way confirmed the identity of human remains found in Carroll County over the weekend.
The Carroll County Sheriff’s Office has always been very forthcoming with members of the press in our state by way of Press Releases. This particular investigation is a multi-agency effort and those agencies have agreed that any and all information will be released to the public by cooperation between themselves. It is regretful that a member of the press has chosen to run with a story that has not been confirmed. Identification of bodies is based on much more science than a mere picture that has not been verified by any of the agencies involved. It is a shame to burden family members of potential victims before certain identification has been made.
Therefore, as stated in an initial press release dated 2/2/25, no further information is available at this time because the investigation is ongoing and of a sensitive nature.”
The exact location of the body that was found has not been released, but Carroll County is a very short distance from Grenada, the hometown of Lee’s accused killer Timothy Herrington. Herrington’s trial for capital murder in Lee’s case resulted in a mistrial in December.
It is unclear what the impact would be on a re-trial for Herrington if the body found in Carroll County does turn out to be Lee.
Oxford Police Department has made repeated statements that it is now a mission of their department to locate Lee and bring him home. In a statement Monday, they said they are anxiously awaiting more information on the identity of the body.
