Sam Bowers has been accused of masterminding a firebomb raid in Mississippi which killed a leading civil rights activist in 1966.

He was taken away in handcuffs by investigators for the State Attorney's Office.

It is alleged that a group of Klansmen bombed the home of Vernon Dahmer, a black civil rights activist in January 1966.

Dahmer, who worked for the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People, died in the atttack, although his wife and children managed to escape.

Sam Bowers had been under suspicion for decades because of his role as Imperial Wizard of the White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.

During the 1960s, the White Knights were linked to a number of harrassment charges, firebomb attacks and murders.

Bowers stood trial for the attack at the time, but the jury failed to reach a verdict in his case. Three other men were convicted for their part in the attack.

However, new information has emerged from notes taken from FBI files which suggest that Bowers tried to influence the jurors.

He is due to face trial again for murder and arson. He is also charged with planning and ordering the attack.

Two other men, Charles Noble and Deavours Nix, were also arrrested on related charges.