No official cause of death has been determined in the case in body found in Mississippi.

Rasheem Carter was reported missing Oct. 2, 2022, by his family. Carter had been staying in Laurel and working temporarily in Taylorsville.

On Nov. 2, 2022, skeletal remains were found on a property in Smith County. After examination by the Mississippi State Crime Lab, they were determined to be those of Carter, according to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation.

At the request of Smith County Sheriff’s Office, MBI joined the investigation in November. MBI assisted by conducting interviews, investigating the area where the remains were found, and investigating tips to help determine Carter’s last-known whereabouts.

A forensic anthropology examination was completed by the Mississippi State Medical Examiners Officer Feb. 2, 2023. Based solely upon the condition of the remains, a cause of death could not be reasonably determined by the ME’s office.

MBI and Smith County SO are continuing the investigation, however. Anyone with information is asked to submit tips to mbitips@dps.ms.gov.

When the remains of Carter, age 25, were found, SCSO said there was no reason to believe foul play was involved.

Since then, members of Carter’s family have repeatedly called for federal investigation, saying they suspect this was a hate crime murder.

According to multiple reports, Carter was last seen in early October outside a Super 8 hotel in Laurel, about 30 miles from where he was working under contract at Georgia-Pacific in Taylorsville. Carter’s mother, Tiffany Carter, said the last time she spoke to her son he said he was being chased by white men yelling racial slurs at him.

Sheriff Joel Houston told the Washington Post he welcomed the Justice Department’s involvement.

“There is nothing to be swept under the rug or hidden in that nature,” Houston said. “There’s no indication that someone killed him. The evidence we do have does coincide with what animals would do to a body.”

Citing an open investigation, MBI declined further comment.