Body of Jelani Day found
BLOOMINGTON, Ill. (WICS/WRSP) — The LaSalle County Coroner has identified the body of 25-year-old Jelani Day.
RELATED: Unidentified body found near Illinois River
Day was found on Sept. 4, 2021, floating near the south bank of the Illinois River.
The location is approximately 1/4 mile east of the Illinois Rt. 251 Bridge.
RELATED: Search ends for missing ISU student Jelani Day
On Thursday, Sept. 23, the coroner positively identified the body as that of Jelani Day through forensic dental identification and DNA testing and comparison.
At a press conference Thursday, Bloomington Police Department public information officer John Fermon said this day, first and foremost, is about Day and his family.
Fermon said in late August they received information that led law enforcement agencies to launch a full, wide-scale search of the Illinois river, where crews found a body on Sept. 4. This, we now know, was the body of Jelani Day.
"If anybody takes anything away from this it is to put yourself in their shoes," Fermon said. "Just imagine how you would feel. It doesn't matter if your kid is six, 15, 25 or 45, no parent should have to go through that."
Further testing is being done to determine the official cause of death.
Day was last heard from on Aug. 23, 2021.
His last known location was Beyond Hello in Bloomington around 9:21 a.m. on Aug. 24, 2021.
RELATED: Missing ISU student's mom speaks out
His family from Danville and a faculty member reported him missing after he did not show up for class for several days.
On Thursday, Aug. 26, Jelani's vehicle was found in Peru, Illinois in a wooded area.
