Police Say Heiress Likely Murdered

The home of a multimillionaire furniture heiress missing for nearly a week is smeared with blood, leading police to believe she was killed.

Jacqueline Levitz, 62, moved to Vicksburg three weeks ago, but hasn’t been seen by her new neighbors since Saturday.

Relatives worried when they were unable to reach her by telephone Sunday, and one came to Vicksburg on Monday.

The relative found the door standing open, a blood-soaked mattress and a blood-smeared bathroom, said Warren County Sheriff Paul Barrett.

A television was on and artificial fingernails were scattered around as if a struggle had taken place, Barrett said. Two purses were missing.

“Judging from the large amount of blood, I would think she may have been murdered,” the sheriff said Wednesday.

“What’s so puzzling is the lady is missing. If somebody was going to break in, why take the body?” Barrett said.

Sheets are missing from her bed and authorities believe her body was wrapped in them.

Levitz is the widow of Ralph Levitz, founder of the Levitz Furniture chain. He died of a stroke in March. As of early this year, the company had 135 stores in 26 states, with annual sales of $1 billion.

Friends and family said Levitz moved to her new home overlooking the Mississippi River from Palm Beach, Fla., to escape the fast-paced life she led there.

“She wanted to get out of the limelight” and be close to her family in Louisiana, said Betty Moody, previous owner of the house that Levitz bought.

Levitz has two sisters in Louisiana and five brothers who live in the South.

“We have a big family and we’re very close,” said Levitz’s sister, Gerri Brown of Lake Providence, La.