A 61-year-old white man from East Peoria was found dead in the Illinois River below the Murray Baker Bridge around 10:59 a.m. Saturday, according to a news release issued by Tazewell County Coroner Charles Hanley late Saturday evening.
The man, whose identity is being withheld pending notification of relatives, was pronounced dead at 12:10 p.m. An autopsy will be conducted Monday, and further information will be released Monday afternoon, Hanley said. The case is being investigated by the East Peoria Police Department and the Illinois State Police Crime Scene Investigators and the Tazewell County Coroner’s Office.
Earlier Saturday, East Peoria police Chief Steve Roegge said officers and firefighters were called to an area under the bridge just before 11 a.m. where a man was found. The man, who was wearing shorts, a shirt and shoes, was deceased, he said.
The man was very close to the shore near Bass Pro Shops and was recovered by firefighters.
Mike Johnson of the Fondulac Park District Police Department said he responded with the district’s rescue boat.