The Colbert County Sheriff’s Office in Alabama is asking the FBI to investigate a case involving a Black man whose body was found hanging in an abandoned home amid claims from his wife that his death was made to look like a suicide.
The sheriff’s office requested the FBI’s involvement in the death of 39-year-old Dennoriss Richardson, whose body was found in September, according to The Associated Press.
The sheriff’s office did not immediately respond Saturday to a request for comment from NBC News. The FBI said it was aware of the death, but would neither confirm nor deny they were taking part in an investigation.
“The FBI is aware of the tragic death of Dennoriss Richardson and takes allegations of federal law violations seriously,” the FBI said in a statement. “The FBI reviews allegations of criminal conduct for their merit and conducts further investigation if there is evidence of a potential violation of federal law.”
Richardson was found hanging by a rope on Sept. 28 at a home in Colbert County. The sheriff’s office ruled his death a suicide, the AP reported.
But his wife, Leigh Ann Richardson, is not convinced he died by suicide, telling AL.com that she demands answers.
“This was made to look like a suicide. It’s not a suicide,” she told the news site.
She said her husband filed a federal lawsuit in February against police in Sheffield, where they live, accusing them of taking part in abusive behavior while he was detained in the Sheffield City Jail in 2022. The latest filing in the federal case was a motion to substitute parties with Dennoriss Richardson’s wife.
A lawyer for the sheriff’s office did not immediately respond to a request to comment.
Colbert County Sheriff Eric Balentine said, according to AL.com, that police spoke to other family members of Dennoriss Richardson who said he had been depressed.
“The D.A.’s office ordered an autopsy. The body was sent to the Department of Forensic Science in Huntsville. The cause of death was suicide,” Balentine said.
The AP reported that Sheriff Balentine confirmed the FBI accepted his request to look into the case, saying his department “exhausted all resources” in its investigation.
Leigh Ann told AL.com that her husband, who was out on bail on a drug charge at the time death, had given his son some of his jewelry because he was going to return to prison to finish out a sentence.
“He was not depressed,” she said.