Mystery as US politician is found murdered at same spot where her sister-in-law was found dead

Police say they are looking at the cases ‘with fresh eyes’

File Ashley Henley was found dead with a gunshot wound in her lawn (AP)

A former Mississippi lawmaker’s body was discovered in the same spot where her sister-in-law was found dead last year, days after the politician vowed to seek justice in the case of her relative.

Ashley Henley, 40, a former Republican, was found dead from a gunshot wound on Sunday night in Yalobusha County, the North Mississippi Herald reported.

Assistant District Attorney Steven Jubera said in a statement that the gunshot was “non-accidental” and they are investigating the case as a homicide.

Henley appeared to have been mowing grass in her lawn near the trailer where the burned body of her sister-in-law, Kristina Michelle Jones, was found on 26 December.

Her sister-in-law died in a trailer fire, according to reports. But police said they are looking at the case “with fresh eyes.”

“We are going back to square one (in Jones’s case) after receiving an initial Fire Marshal’s report and lab reports,” Mr Jubera was quoted as saying by Mississippi Today.

The attorney added that the “family has gone through a lot in the last six month” and they would thoroughly investigate the matter.

Henley is survived by her husband Brandon Henley, and a son.

“Yes it was my wife Ashley Henley that was found murdered in the same place my sister was. She was running a weed eater and was shot in the back of the head according to local authorities,” Henley’s husband wrote on Facebook. “That’s all they have told us at the moment,” he said.

Henley recently expressed her frustrations about her sister-in-law’s case on social media and said she will continue to push for justice in the case.

Representative Dan Eubanks of DeSoto County said he was heartbroken with her death and organised a GoFundMe account to assist her family financially as they have “suffered several financial difficulties over the last few years.”

“What an absolute loss to our state, county, me personally, and most importantly her dear family,” he said on Facebook. “Please pray for her husband and son and their extended family….and that God’s justice will be served on those responsible.”

House Speaker Philip Gunn’s office also released a statement: “We are all shocked and saddened by this news. Our thoughts and prayers are with Ashley’s family and friends.”

Henley, a former teacher, served a four-year term from 2016-2020 in the state House of Representatives but lost her re-election bid in 2019 by 14 votes.