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Joliet man drowned in Des Plaines River: coroner

Illinois State Police investigating incident after body recovered from river

By Felix Sarver
A truck drives along Interstate 80 over the Des Plaines River on Friday, Aug. 11, 2017, in Joliet, Ill.

A truck drives along Interstate 80 over the Des Plaines River on Friday, Aug. 11, 2017, in Joliet, Ill. (Shaw Media)

The body of a man was pulled from the Des Plaines River in Joliet and an autopsy revealed he drowned.

At 6:40 p.m. Tuesday, Anthony Dunn, 38, of Joliet, was pronounced deceased in the Des Plaines River near the 700 block of Railroad Street, according to a Will County Coroner’s Office news release.

The area is south of the Interstate 80 bridge that passes over the river and close to Rockdale.

“An autopsy performed today revealed Mr. Dunn had drowned,” officials said.

The Illinois State Police is investigating the incident. State Trooper Jayme Bufford would not provide information on the investigation.

“The investigation remains active and ongoing. In order to protect the integrity of the investigation, no information is available at this time,” Bufford said.

The Joliet Fire Department responded to the scene at 3:57 p.m. Tuesday in response to a request to assist to Rockdale with a body in the river, said Joliet Fire Chief Greg Blaskey.

Blaskey said the area is under the jurisdiction of the Rockdale Fire Department and Illinois State Police. He referred questions on the incident to those agencies.

Rockdale Fire Chief Dave Brady has not yet responded to a message and call regarding the incident.

Last year, two other bodies were also recovered from the same area.

On April 23, William Madera, 49, of Crest Hill was pronounced deceased at 724 Railroad St., Joliet, after his body was recovered from the Des Plaines River.

On Jan. 4, 2020, Diego Santiago 17, of Chicago was pronounced dead near the 700 block of Railroad Street in Joliet. Santiago had disappeared and was found floating in the Des Plaines River.

An autopsy revealed that Santiago drowned. He had been reported missing by his adult half-brother on Nov. 20, 2019, Joliet police said.

In 2019, the body of 16-year-old Lesley Reynoso was recovered from the banks of Des Plaines River at Railroad Street. Reynoso’s death was ruled a suicide. A 17-year-old male later pleaded guilty to inducing her to die by suicide.