Missing For 10 Years, Bones Of Joliet's Marcus Wright Found: Coroner

JOLIET, IL — Marcus Wright was 24 years old when he vanished without a trace from Joliet in 2013. On Monday, Will County Coroner Laurie Summers announced on Facebook that two human bones found in late March in a wooded area of the Will County Forest Preserve are those of the missing Joliet resident.

According to Summers, the Joliet Police Department developed new leads earlier this year and that resulted in several searches of an area east of McKay Street, including a wooded area. Two human bones were found on March 24 and the Will County Coroner's staff took possession of them.

One bone was sent to Othram Inc. in Texas, along with a DNA swab from Marcus Wright’s mom. Othram Inc. has partnered with the Will County Coroner Office on several occasions these last two years, resulting in the resolution of four other cold cases.

This past Friday, Summers and her staff learned there was a 100 percent relationship match between the bone and the mother of the missing person, Marcus Wright.

"Throughout the subsequent years, Joliet Police investigated numerous leads, including leads that he had been murdered," Summers announced on Monday.

McKay Street connects with Woodruff Road, and it's in the Forest Park area of Joliet's east side.

Joliet Patch has reached out to Joliet Police Department for additional information related to this development, including whether Wright's death is being treated as a homicide.