A body found near the site of a car crash that apparently occurred in a West Chicago ravine may be that of an elderly man from Arlington Heights who was first reported missing in August. According to West Chicago Police Commander, Eric Shipman officers discovered a partially decomposed body next to a car that was registered to the missing man, 84 year old Eugene Jonsson. The discovery was made near Illinois Route 59 at Hawthorne Lane in West Chicago on Thursday, September 19th.
Said Shipman, “We feel it may be [Jonsson]. The car is registered to the missing gentleman. There was a deceased body next to it. Logic might conclude that.” Mr Jonsson was last known to have left his home on August 22nd at around 7.45 p.m to head to a local restaurant, but, according to family members and police, he never made it there. The last known sighting of the missing man was when he stopped in Yorkville that night to ask for directions. He was later reported missing by concerned family members.
The car, and the body, was discovered on Thursday by a local landscaper, who then flagged down police for assistance. The car had come to rest about 50 feet away from the road in a heavily wooded ravine that is not easily visible from the road. Police closed the northbound lanes of the highway for around an hour and a half while they began their investigation.
According to police, it is their preliminary belief that the car had been travelling northbound on Route 59 when it came to a slight S-curve in the road and apparently veered off the road, hitting several trees before settling into the ravine. It sustained heavy front damage and the airbags had been deployed.
“It may have been this vehicle kept going straight when it should have started going left,” said Shipman. Foul play is not suspected at this time and an autopsy and a review of dental records will be used to provide a formal identification of the body.