The Jelani Day case remains a mystery even after three years – Shaw Local

On August 24, 2021, Jelani Day began his first week of in-person classes as a doctoral student in speech-language pathology at Illinois State University.

He was seen at 7:20 a.m. at the Bone Student Center in Normal. He was wearing a blue button-down shirt, black pants, a black belt, black dress shoes and a blue face mask. About two hours later, he was spotted on surveillance footage from Beyond/Hello, a marijuana dispensary in Bloomington. He was wearing a Jimi Hendrix band shirt, white shorts and black shoes with white soles – it was the last time Day was seen alive.

Day, 25, was reported missing by his program director after missing class. On August 25, 2021, police went to his Danville home to notify his family of his disappearance. The next day, his white 2010 Chrysler 300 was found hidden in a wooded area behind the Peru YMCA.

His body was found nine days later in the Illinois River in La Salle County. It took another 19 days for the coroner to identify him.

Since Day's death, investigators have been baffled by key questions: What brought him to the Illinois Valley, how did he die, why was the location on his phone disabled, and how did he spend his final hours? Day's family, the community, and the police are still searching for answers.

The La Salle County coroner's office said Day's cause of death was drowning without signs of a struggle, but his mother, Carmen Bolden Day, insists her son did not die by suicide and suspects foul play.

“Law enforcement agencies involved in the investigation into Jelani Day's death agree with the medical examiner's determination that the cause of death is drowning and the manner of death is undetermined at this time,” said Peru Police Chief Sarah Raymond.

Peruvian police have been involved in a comprehensive multi-agency investigation and no current leads or further information are available.

“As in every case, our goal is to find out what happened to Mr. Day,” she said. “And we have worked tirelessly to give Mr. Day's family the answers they deserve.”

A series of emails show that local police asked the FBI to take over the case or provide assistance. The FBI assigned a case officer to assist in the investigation but declined to take over the case, according to documents obtained in response to a Freedom of Information Act request.

In the trunk of Day's car, records show, were his diary, a marijuana blunt and a Tennessee license plate.

On September 2, his wallet was found in La Salle, just north of the car. His ISU lanyard was found on September 4 along US 6.

The license plate on his car was removed and never recovered. Police said there was a license plate on the back of his car. The screws were missing.

Raymond had previously told Shaw Local News Network that someone had taken the license plate, but it was unclear if it was Day or someone else.

The question remains what drew Day to the Illinois Valley, since he had never been to the area before and didn't know anyone.

Last June, Bloomington police were able to unlock Day's cellphone using video footage Bolden Day provided to authorities that showed her son unlocking his phone.

His phone was discovered on Interstate 55 near Bloomington in November 2021 and sent to the FBI at the request of the task force. The FBI sent it back.

Some cell phone records show that Day last searched Safari for “Greyhound bus tickets” on August 24 at 12:33 a.m. Coordinated Universal Time, which is 7:33 a.m. Central Daylight Time.

According to police, he turned off his phone during “Beyond Hello” and was no longer able to track his location from that point on.

Another phone was found in the area where his clothing was discovered in La Salle, but authorities were unable to retrieve any information from the phone.

“As for the LG phone, it was turned over to the Bloomington Police Department to attempt a forensic download,” Raymond said. “However, due to the age and condition of the phone, a download could not be performed.”

Raymond said all agencies involved have spent countless hours investigating this case and will continue to seek information from the public.

“There is still a $10,000 reward for any key information about Day's final hours,” she said.

Anyone with information about the case should contact the Peru Police at 815-223-2151.

Day's family seeks more clarity

Carmen Bolden Day, Jelani Day's mother, said there has been no progress or urgency in her son's case since it began.

After Day's death, his family demanded justice and asked that the FBI take over the investigation. They also claimed that there was a lack of communication, evidence was mishandled and that police did not pay enough attention to the case.

“I don't feel there was any concern,” she said. “As I said and I'll say again – they didn't show the urgency that was needed… Time waits for no man and they wasted valuable time.”

Bolden Day said she believes police could have explored or investigated many possibilities, but did not do so because they were too busy trying to figure out what kind of person her son was.

“They let too many days go by and too much time go by before they even tried to get information,” she said. “It wasn't until September 24 that they told me they were going back to day one – that's 30 days.”

According to a report, Bloomington police were unable to conduct video surveillance of his apartment complex because the agency waited until Sept. 2, 2021, and the apartment only had five days of footage, according to police records obtained through a Freedom of Information Act release.

Police have classified Day's case as a fatality and said they have no leads. Last October, the task force announced it would no longer actively work on the case.

Bolden Day said she was not informed before the announcement and only learned of the news when the article came out.

“We had a meeting scheduled with the task force,” she said. “It was supposed to be in the first week of October, but instead they canceled the meeting and published the article.”

Bolden Day founded the Jelani Day Foundation to help other minority families find their missing loved ones. She also played a key role in passing a state law that took effect this year that requires medical examiners to seek help from the FBI if they cannot identify a body within 72 hours.

Bolden Day said she will continue to fight to find out what happened to her child by reaching out, building relationships and putting pressure on elected officials.

“I'm calling for a congressional investigation,” she said. “I want the Department of Justice involved. I'm still fighting. I need to find out what happened to my child and I need those responsible to tell me what they did to my son and why.”

“I want them to be punished,” Bolden Day said. “Jelani doesn't deserve this. I have to get up every day. It's a battle every day.”