NATCHEZ — The only person arrested in the brutal rape, murder and burning of Natchez resident Terry Lynn Farmer decided to skip his initial court date and go straight to the grand jury.

Willie Duck, 33, of Fayette, was arrested in September on charges of accessory after the fact to rape, accessory after the fact to murder and accessory after the fact to arson.

He was scheduled for a preliminary hearing — the process in which the court determines if probable cause has been established to charge a person with a crime — Tuesday, but he decided to waive his right to the hearing, Duck’s attorney Dexter Woodberry said.

The waiver means that Duck’s case will automatically be bound over to an Adams County grand jury, Woodberry said.

Duck reportedly told investigators he knew Farmer because he had worked at her house before, and later reportedly gave conflicting statements about what he knew.

Natchez Police Sgt. Craig Godbold said that, while Duck has been charged, the case is still an active investigation.

“We are still looking for the primary subjects,” Godbold said. “It is still wide open.”

The Farmer murder was discovered when a Natchez Police officer on patrol in the Shadow Lane area smelled smoke and was able to follow it to her residence.

When the fire was extinguished, Farmer was discovered dead in the bedroom, having been beaten, raped, shot and set on fire.

Evidence at the scene indicated the fire had been set to conceal the murder.