A man escaped Sudan’s bloody civil war. His mysterious death in Missisippi has sparked suspicion

By MICHAEL GOLDBERG
Associated Press/Report for America

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Dau Mabil escaped war-torn Sudan as a child and built a new life in Mississippi. Fishermen found the body of the 33-year-old Mabil floating in a river earlier this month. The case has prompted calls for a federal investigation into his disappearance and death after an initial autopsy did not reveal signs of foul play. Democratic U.S. Rep. Bennie Thompson, whose district includes Jackson, sent a letter to Attorney General Merrick Garland requesting a Justice Department investigation into Mabil’s disappearance. The deceased man’s brother says the family hopes a second, independent autopsy will shed more light on what happened.