A woman whose body was found Friday night near an Edwards farm died from blows to her head and neck, autopsy results showed.

Hinds County Coroner Sharon Grisham-Stewart said the autopsy revealed blunt-force trauma.

While the body is believed to be that of 81-year old Ethel Winstead Simpson, the Clinton woman who has not been seen since leaving a Vicksburg casino Monday night with a convicted sex offender, Grisham-Stewart said dental records or DNA comparisons would be required for positive identification.

“The most important thing at this point is to identify the deceased,” Lt. Jeffery Scott, spokesman for the Hinds County Sheriff’s Department, said Saturday. Hinds County deputies oversaw the investigation and removal of the remains Friday night.

The body was discovered when Edwards hog farmer Charlie Lloyd Richardson, who owns land on Mississippi 22, called Edwards police to report an unusual odor. Edwards police discovered the body, partially covered by a large plastic container, and alerted deputies.

Grisham-Stewart conducted an initial examination at the scene and oversaw the removal of the remains to the Mississippi Crime Lab.

Clinton Police Chief Don Byington said Friday that the description of the dead woman’s clothing — a red shirt and brown or khaki pants — was an exact match with what Simpson had been seen wearing.

“We have a strong belief that it could be her,” Byington said.

James Cobb Hutto III, 39, of Jasper, Ala., the man with whom Simpson was last seen as they left Riverwalk Casino around 11:40 p.m. Monday, was arrested Friday in Lee County, Ala., near Auburn.

Hutto was wanted for questioning in the recent death of a relative in Alabama. He was arrested after police pulled him over on a highway while he was driving Simpson’s car. Authorities say he has been charged with robbing and attempting to kill Mark Ambers Cox, 59, of Opelika.

Byington said Clinton investigators have been sent to Alabama to interrogate Hutto in Simpson’s disappearance.

Investigators believe Hutto befriended Simpson on the walking track at the Baptist Healthplex in Clinton, Byington said. A few hours later, the two were seen driving away in Simpson’s car, and later were seen leaving the casino.

Hutto already was wanted in Alabama because he has failed to register as a sex offender, according to Richard Griffin, supervisory deputy with the U.S. Marshals Service in Jackson. He was convicted in 2002 of sexually abusing a 17-year-old girl and sentenced to two concurrent 10-year terms, for which he served 3 1/2 years before his release in 2005.