Missing Oak Lawn Man's Body Found In Lake Michigan by Navy Pier

CHICAGO, IL — An Oak Lawn man missing since Valentine’s Day was found deceased Monday at Navy Pier, police said. Jonathon “Jon” Rice, 30, had been reported missing by his family after not hearing from him for several days. His body was pulled from the waters of Lake Michigan by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Rice was last seen Feb. 14 leaving his job at a South Chicago Heights manufacturing facility at the end of the work day. His car passed through the toll plaza at 163rd Street heading in a northbound direction. His cell phone went silent later that evening.

Rice’s 2006 blue Chevy Cobalt was found in a parking garage at Navy Pier on Friday. A security video captured him driving into the garage the last day he was seen or heard from. Rice was alone when he drove into the parking garage. After locating Rice’s vehicle in the Navy Pier garage, Oak Lawn detectives, along with Navy Pier security, combed through hours of surveillance video.

Video showed Rice walking out of the garage. Further investigation indicated that a search of the water near Navy Pier was required, and Rice's body was located a short time later. The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office has ruled the cause of death as drowning. Police say they've ruled out foul play.

The Oak Lawn man’s family and friends took an active role in the search, creating a “Where’s Jon Rice” Facebook page. Rice’s family organized a search in the Navy Pier area over the weekend, handing out fliers and speaking to business owners in the area.

Police said Rice, who lived alone in an Oak Lawn apartment, had no history of mental health or substance abuse issues and described him as an “upstanding guy.”