Lake Mattoon body identified, two charged in homicide case

Boaters on Lake Mattoon found a human arm floating in the water on the evening of June 28, 2026. Illinois State Police opened a homicide investigation after the recovery in downstate Illinois, with two people now charged in a case that began as a body recovery and quickly widened into a search for more remains.

The Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office asked the Illinois State Police Division of Criminal Investigations Zone 8 to take over the case after the first recovery. Investigators searched farther in the lake and found additional body parts, deepening what had already become a criminal inquiry into concealment of a homicide and dismembering a human body.

The remains were later identified as 38-year-old Dalewayne Turner of Plainfield. Tattoos on the recovered arm helped confirm who Turner was, including a skeleton design and a Packers-themed image.

Police arrested James Adams, 26, and Robin Turner, 62, after developing them as suspects during the investigation. Both were charged in connection with the homicide case, and the charges reflect what investigators believe happened after Turner’s death: an effort to hide the killing and dispose of the body in pieces. Officials have not publicly laid out a motive or detailed timeline for how the death and dismemberment unfolded.

Lake Mattoon, which spans about 1,050 surface acres and has public boat-launch access, is a municipally managed reservoir across parts of Coles, Cumberland and Shelby counties. Boaters who first saw the arm stayed nearby so it would not drift away before authorities arrived.