Body Found In Illinois River During Search For Missing Woman

CHICAGO (AP) — Authorities are working to confirm whether a body found in the Illinois River is that of a woman who was reported missing in February.

The Tazewell County Sheriff's Office says the body was inside a Jeep Liberty SUV that was discovered Saturday by search crews using sonar on the river near the community of Manito. It was the same vehicle that 69-year-old Lois Fidler was driving when she left her nearby home on Feb. 20.

Officials say the submerged vehicle was about 20 feet from shore in the river about 20 miles southwest of Peoria.

The weekend search was organized by the Missing Persons Awareness Network. Group president Gia Marie Wright says Fidler had dementia and didn't tell anyone she was leaving home on a rainy and slick evening.

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