On August 31, 1955, Emmett Till's body was found 2.6 miles to the southeast on land adjacent to the Tallahatchie River, where fishermen discovered it after it had been dumped presumably as a warning to the black community. A cotton gin fan had been tied around Till's neck with barbed wire. Till's uncle, Moses Wright, identified the swollen and mutilated body because he recognized a ring Emmett wore on his finger. The FBI later confirmed the identity through DNA testing.