OXFORD WEEKLY PLANET

Monday, December 1

Mailbox mishap leads to murder

Santa flees the scene

A simple 911 call reporting a knocked-over mailbox late Monday night eventually led to a gruesome discovery and a homicide investigation.

Pearidge Road resident Bonnie Duncan reported seeing a black Chevrolet SUV back into her neighbor's mailbox before speeding away. She claims the driver was dressed as Santa.

When a Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department officer attempted to contact someone inside the 107 Pearidge Road residence where the mailbox had been damaged, he received no response.

Concerned for the occupants, YCSD officers conducted a well-being check of the residence and found the body of a young woman lying on the floor. Within minutes, detectives and other investigative personnel were on the scene.

YCSD Public Information Officer Elizabeth Jones said it appears the woman was the victim of foul play, but she declined to specify how the victim was killed.

"We are treating this case as a homicide," Jones told reporters. "We're not prepared to name a suspect at this stage of the investigation, but we are looking into some significant leads."

Neighbors said they had seen a number of vehicles parked at the house earlier that evening, and they believed the homeowner had been hosting a party.

Neighbor Harold Keyes said, "Normally, it was quiet over at [the victim's] house, but last night, there were some fellas over there who were getting pretty loud. If you ask me, they were hitting the bottle a little harder than maybe they ought to have been. When I saw all those cop cars out front, I figured somebody had called about the noise. Never would've guessed it was what it was."

A neighbor who asked not to be identified described the homeowner as "a lovely young woman, who was always friendly and cheerful."

Officials have not identified the victim as the homeowner, and the neighbor said, "I really hope nothing bad has happened to her. It would be a terrible tragedy for this neighborhood and this city."

According to Jones, no one other than the victim was found at the residence when YCSD officers arrived, but she confirmed that indications of a recent party were observed inside.

Authorities are not yet releasing the victim's identity, but neighbors say she was the owner of the house where her body was found.

"She was a good neighbor and a great friend," Duncan said. "I just can't believe she was murdered."

By Kemper Jones at 9:31 AM