Crime & Safety
Doctor's Call to Cops Sparked Search for Sinead O'Connor: Report
Wilmette police records show an unidentified physician concerned about the singer had area authorities searching hotels for her last month.
A call to Wilmette police by an unidentified doctor worried about the welfare of singer Sinead O'Connor prompted a search for the pop star who was reported missing during a bike ride last month, according to The Associated Press.
RELATED: Sinead O'Connor Found Safe After She Was Reported Missing
Wilmette police records obtained by the AP show a doctor claiming to have O'Connor, 48, as a patient called the department May 15. An hour later, that call from the doctor, whose name is redacted in the records, had officers from 10 local police departments scouring area hotels looking for O'Connor.
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The singer—who had been staying with friends in Chicago after leaving Ireland "amid a medical and personal crisis" in January—was found at a Morton Grove hotel later the same day and taken to a nearby hospital.
RELATED: Celebs, Sinead O'Connor Fans Go Online to Support Troubled Singer
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Initial reports about O'Connor going missing described her as being suicidal, and the entertainer has not hidden her struggles with depression and mental illness. In late November, she reportedly received medical treatment for an alleged overdose in a hotel room in Ireland after publishing a Facebook update that read like a possible suicide note.
After she had been safely found in May, O'Connor posted a Facebook update directed at her first ex-husband that said her "suicidal compulsion isn't being manipulative."
While in the Chicago area, O'Connor performed at impromptu appearances earlier this year. In February, she sang "Sweet Home Chicago" with blues legend Buddy Guy at The Barn. O'Connor also performed at a cancer benefit concert in March at Metro Chicago that was held for the show venue's founder, Joe Shanahan. During the show, she sang a covers of David Bowie's "Life on Mars" and "Sorrow."
PHOTO: Sinead O'Connor performs at a cancer benefit concert in March 2016 at Metro Chicago. (YouTube screen shot from Stephapelvis)
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