A Mississippi man mowing his lawn discovered the “partially decomposed body” of 43-year-old Charles Warner Ingram who had been released from jail two weeks earlier, authorities announced Wednesday.
Charles Warner Ingram was found Friday afternoon on a farm property in Neshoba County’s Fork Community, about a half-mile west of Highway 15, according to a Neshoba County Sheriff’s Office statement. The homeowner made the discovery while mowing his lawn. Mississippi Forensics Laboratory identified Ingram through fingerprints after the deputies, the county medical examiner and Mississippi Bureau of Investigations officers searched the area for evidence, police stated.
Ingram served time at the Neshoba County Detention Facility from July 13 to August 14 on two Failure to Appear warrants, according to the police statement. Neshoba County Justice Court ordered his release, and he left the facility around 2 p.m. on August 14.
Two days later, surveillance cameras captured Ingram walking to the jail, drinking from a water fountain and leaving on foot toward Highway 15, police said. That footage, recorded August 16, showed the last known sighting of the Philadelphia, Mississippi, resident alive. (RELATED: Police Launch Frantic Search For Texas Man ‘Mistakenly’ Released From Jail)
Police initially announced on August 29 that a resident had discovered a “partially decomposed body” while mowing his rural property.
Police estimate Ingram’s body remained on the property “possibly up [to] 4 to 6 weeks,” ABC News reported.
Investigators continue examining how Ingram died and ended up on the property, the outlet reported. The sheriff’s office has not disclosed whether they suspect foul play or if anyone reported Ingram missing during the two weeks between his last sighting and the discovery of his body. The investigation remains ongoing.