(Peoria County, IL) Tuesday, July 23rd, 2024, at approximately 1:00 p.m., the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office was notified by the Green Island Police Department in New York about a missing 77 year old male named John F. Dubaic from Green Island, NY. The male was last seen by family in New York leaving in his RV on July 13th. The last contact John had with family was on July 15th. Investigators from New York contacted the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office today and gave a location near Elmore in Peoria County where Dubaic’s RV GPS had “pinged” at. Peoria County Sheriff’s Office Detectives responded to the area and located the RV by using a drone on a property off of Cedar Bluff Rd near the Spoon River just south of Elmore. It was a very remote location and due to a tree found on the RV it is believed Dubaic’s RV was there since last week before the strong storms came through the area.
Immediately after finding the RV with no sign of Dubaic, Peoria County Search and Rescue, Knox County Search and Rescue, Tazewell County Search and Rescue, Mercer County Search and Rescue, Woodford County EMA, and McClean County Search and Rescue responded to the area. At approximately 5:00 p.m. today, Search and Rescue members and Knox County deputies located Dubaic in the brush near the Spoon River off of Cedar Bluff Rd in Peoria County. Dubaic was found down and was breathing but not alert. First responders carried Dubaic through rough terrain and immediately started CPR. Brimfield Fire and OSF Lifeflight responded but unfortunately Dubaic was pronounced deceased after life saving measures were done for an extended amount of time. The Peoria County Coroner then responded to the scene.
We would like to say thank you to all the responding agencies especially Knox County Sheriff Jack Harlan and his team along with the all the volunteer search and rescue teams that responded. This was one of the most difficult searches that have been done in Peoria County due to the terrain.
***Released by Sheriff Chris Watkins, Peoria County Sheriff’s Office Facebook Page***
