Body found in trash truck in Illinois identified

The body of a man found dead in a trash truck Friday in Jonesboro, Illinois, has been identified as Anthony Gilks, 35, of Anna, Illinois.

Illinois State Police and Union County Coroner Phil Hileman are investigating how Gilks ended up in a truck.

According to a preliminary autopsy report, “the cause of death appears to be accidental and is consistent with a compression-type injury,” Anna police detective Bryan Watkins said in a written statement Saturday afternoon.

Police do not suspect foul play, but the final autopsy report has not been completed as of Saturday afternoon, Watkins said in the statement.

On Friday, Hileman offered the possibility Gilks might have been homeless and sought shelter from recent heavy rains in a dumpster. Hileman said he thinks the man died “very recently.”

The body was discovered near the Jonesboro Rehab and Nursing Center. Hileman said the trash truck’s route started in Cambria, Illinois, traveled through multiple towns before stopping in Carbondale and then continued into Union County Illinois.

Pertinent address:

995 Highway 127, Jonesboro, Ill.