NATCHEZ — Sheriff Chuck Mayfield said Tuesday he felt confident investigators will soon close in on a suspect in the murder of 71-year-old Elida P. Lopoo Rosenson.

Mayfield said investigations suggest Rosenson’s murderer was someone she knew.

“This was not a random thing,” he said.

Last week, deputies found Rosenson dead in her Linden Drive house with no outward signs of a struggle, but an autopsy revealed on Saturday that Rosenson died of asphyxiation by strangulation.

Investigators are waiting on toxicology results from the crime lab, Mayfield said. The lab will determine, among other things, if any skin cells were left under the victim’s fingernails to link her with the possible suspect.

Mayfield said his office has been conducting interviews, and the case is on the right track.

“We’re still investigating (the murder), but we’ve made significant progress,” Mayfield said.

Mayfield, who originally thought Rosenson might have died of natural causes, ordered the autopsy as a precaution after deputies recovered some suspicious evidence at her house that suggested a break-in might have occurred.

Mayfield said his office has since ruled out the possibility of a forced entry.

Mayfield said Rosenson lived alone before she was killed.

Deputies discovered Rosenson’s body Friday during a welfare check after receiving a call from a concerned neighbor who had not seen her recently. Mayfield said Rosenson appeared to have been dead for two days when deputies arrived at the scene.