Coroner confirms human remains found Tuesday belong to Karen Schepers
The Kane County coroner on Thursday positively identified the remains of Karen Schepers, an Elgin woman who went missing in 1983.
Schepers vanished 42 years ago after a night out with friends in Carpentersville. Her 1980 yellow Toyota Celica was recovered from the Fox River on Tuesday by the Elgin police and fire departments and Chaos Divers. The car contained human skeletal remains.
A press release from the Kane County Coroner’s office said identification of the remains was made using a forensic odontologist along with dental records provided by the Schepers family.
The Schepers case was the first active investigation for the police department’s newly formed Cold Case Unit. It was also the subject of the department’s “Somebody Knows Something” podcast.
Cold case detectives Andrew Haughton and Matt Vartanian worked with Chaos Divers as the group searched the river on Monday using sonar. The car was found just north of the Slade Avenue boat launch in about seven feet of water.
“I am deeply grateful to the Schepers family for trusting in Detective Matt Vartanian and in me to bring Karen home,” Haughton said in a police department press release. “I know that by us reopening this case, the family was taking a chance that they could be let down, and we were very sensitive to that. I also want to thank them for being open enough to allow us to do a podcast which allowed us to bring attention to Karen and her case.”
Police say that even with the positive identification, questions remain and the investigation remains open and active.
Police Chief Ana Lalley said she’s been in contact with the family and that they will be releasing a statement “in the near future.”
“I know that there will be many questions over these next few weeks, which will be addressed in time,” Lalley said in the release. “Right now, my hope is that the focus remains on the Schepers family and the support that we all can give to them during an unimaginable time as they process the events of this week, which have been no less than extraordinary.”
Police noted that they also found several other sites of interest during their search on Monday and have turned the information over to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, who will investigate further.