NATCHEZ &045;&045; The man FBI officials thought was the &uot;prime suspect&uot; in the Jackson murder has long since died, former Natchez Police Chief Willie Huff said Friday.

But Huff, who had officers begin reinvestigating the 1967 killing in 1998, said he believes the case is worth another look.

&uot;That man’s life is well worth that,&uot; Huff said.

Jackson was killed when dynamite planted under his truck exploded shortly after he drove away from his Armstrong Tire, where he had recently been promoted to a so-called whites-only job.

In 1998, Huff asked the FBI &045;&045; which had been the lead agency on the case in the 1960s &045;&045; as well as the district attorney’s office to assist in the investigation.

Although little was left of the Natchez Police files, the FBI had 5,000 to 6,000 pages of files, Huff said. The FBI &uot;flooded Natchez with agents&uot; when it joined the case in 1967, he said.

The FBI had had a suspect in the 1960s but could never get enough information for a charge, Huff said.

FBI officials believed that more individuals were involved, but those suspects have also died, as well as many of the witnesses in the case.

Still, Huff believes it is important to revisit the crime and try to close the case.

&uot;It’s good that they’re going to throw their resources to the case,&uot; Huff said.

What makes the case more difficult than other recently reopened &045;&045; and solved &045;&045; civil rights cases is that there was never any trial, Huff said.

&uot;This one is different from the other ones. There was no testimony, no one was charged.&uot;

But new technology may be able to help shed light on the case, Huff said.

&uot;I think we owe those folks that came through those times some closure,&uot; he said.