Roughly 100 interviews have been conducted, and authorities are still no closer to solving the mystery that led to the horrific burning attack of a Mississippi teenager. Reward money for information on the case has doubled, the Daily News reported on Tuesday.
On Dec. 6, Jessica Chambers, 19, was found engulfed in flames on the side of a rural road. The reward for the arrest of her killer, who is still on the loose, has been increased to $43,000 by the FBI.
Chambers was found next to her burned car. She was forced to drink lighter fluid before she was lit on fire by her attacker, police said. She spoke before she died at the hospital, which investigators hoped would be a breakthrough in the case, but it has not been confirmed what she said.
One man was detained and questioned for two days, but was eventually let go without charges. Police have not yet identified a suspect in the case, but it's still being investigated as a homicide, the Clarion Ledger reported.
Ben Chambers, Jessica's father, said the family is constantly waiting in a state of anxiety for answers about what happened to Jessica. Since he works at the sheriff's office, Ben Chambers said he has been mostly left out of the loop.
We're just waiting and hoping that something will hurry up and happen, and praying and getting through it," he said. "If something doesn't happen we might go crazy."
Police have said talk on the street has been unusually quiet, especially for such a heinous crime that has garnered national attention. This is said to have hindered authorities in finding a suspect.
There has been speculation that her death could be linked to alleged gang activity in the area. Ben Chambers said someone called him claiming to be a high-ranking local gang member and said that other gangs were upset about what happened to his daughter.
"They're very upset about it. They said you wouldn't even do a dog like that," Ben Chambers said.
Anyone with information about Jessica Chambers' death is asked to call the Panola County Sheriff's Department at (662) 563-6230 or CrimeStoppers at 1-800-729-2169.
