Success and tragedy often go hand in hand for the private Illinois nonprofit search and recovery dive team Chaos Divers.
One of their last successful diving missions led authorities to recently confirm an Oak Park family’s heartbreak: the positive identification of their long-lost loved one, Army veteran John “Johnny” Pisano Jr., who vanished more than two decades ago.
“After 25 years of not knowing where your lost loved one is, it’s a humbling experience to bring answers like that to a family,” Jacob Gruggs, founder of Chaos Divers and part of the recovery team that found Pisano’s remains, told Military.com. “Now they know what happened. They can go on and live their lives in peace.”
It’s been a year since Gruggs and his team were out searching for another Illinois man, Hiep Luu, who was reported missing in 2003. Instead of finding him, sonar equipment in a local pond in Hodgkins, Ill., led to the discovery of Pisano’s remains in a submerged Lincoln Town car, sunken at the bottom of the dark and muddy water.
We absolutely could not tell what was inside that car. The windows were all rolled up and dark. The doors were shut. The car was encapsulated in mud and silt and underwater weeds for 25 years.
Once the car was pulled out of the water and opened, authorities found a decomposed man’s body. The major clue to his identity was the car’s rusted and nearly unrecognizable license plate that was eventually linked to the Pisano family’s missing persons report.
But a positive ID would still take time.
“We’re not sure if it was the pond itself or the dark water the car was in for so long. But it took a year to get 100% confirmation of the remains,” Lindsay Bussick, another member of the Chaos Divers team, told Military.com. “Right now, police are calling it an accident. They say no foul play is suspected.”
Bussick also said that the pond’s obscure location may have been Pisano’s downfall.
“Because of where the pond is, it would have been quite easy for somebody to drive into that pond if they weren’t super familiar with the area,” Bussick said. “We don’t know how he ended up in the water, but he was in his car the whole time.”
Cold Case Disappearance Left Family Without Closure
Pisano’s family had officially reported him missing. But the case had gone cold in 25 years, leaving his relatives mired in the mystery of his disappearance.
There is a lot to this story, which has really shaped a lot of our lives,” wrote Pisano’s daughter, Stephanie Ramos, in a Facebook post. “After many years, we are finally able to have some closure on something that has weighed heavily on our family for a long time.”
According to his obituary, Pisano was a 39-year-old Army veteran who had a history of mental illness when he vanished in 2001. Despite his struggles, Pisano’s obituary described him as an active, fun-loving family man.
“He carried himself with confidence and charisma, always taking pride in his appearance. He loved music, especially Ozzy Osbourne and KISS, and often joked that he looked like John Travolta,” his obituary reads. “Whether he was out dancing in his platform shoes and leather jacket or styling his hair just right, John brought energy and individuality everywhere he went.”
His disappearance with two young daughters at home left a void in Pisano’s family that his daughters lived with while growing up. They spent more than two decades wondering what happened to their dad.
“Beneath that strong personality was a deeply caring man who loved his children immensely,” his obituary read. “Family meant everything to him, and his love for his kids remained constant throughout his life.”
Pisano’s second daughter, Deanna, expressed words of gratitude that her father’s remains had finally been identified.
“We are so grateful to have had my dad found after so many years and to get the closure that many families don’t get the chance to have,” she wrote in her Facebook post. “My sis couldn’t have said it any better.”
Track Record of Successful Recovery Missions
Pisano’s discovery was the 22nd successful recovery mission for Chaos Divers.
Founded in 2019, its mission has been focused on helping families of missing loved ones find closure, especially in cases where waterways need to be searched.
“Jacob started as a scuba diver, and then went into search teamwork,” Bussick said. “Years ago, he was there when the family of a young man who went missing witnessed his truck being pulled out of some water with him inside.
“It was at that moment that Jacob knew instantly what he wanted to do.”
Chaos Divers is entirely self-funded with donations from families and the public, helping to pay for their dive missions. Cold cases involving water searches have become an area of expertise.
“The oldest case we’ve done is 42 years old. Johnny Pisano’s case was 25 years old,” Bussick said. “Even though we weren’t looking for him, we’re grateful we were able to find him.
“To provide closure for somebody else’s story is incredibly humbling and pretty amazing.”
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