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Ava man found near park

By Linda Rush, The southern

Sunday, October 5, 2008 11:16 PM CDT

An elderly Ava man who had been missing since Saturday evening was found Sunday afternoon near Lake Murphysboro State Park, the Jackson County Sheriff's Department said.

Robert Marvel, 80, had been reported missing at about 6 p.m. Saturday after he left his home to go to the Ava Post Office but didn't return. He suffers from dementia, the sheriff's office said in a news release, and initially was believed to be heading to Benton, Anna or Murphysboro.

Marvel's maroon-colored 1993 Nissan Sentra was seen about 9:30 a.m. Sunday at Lake Murphysboro by a park employee, but he was not found in or around the car.

An intensive search was launched in and around the park, involving two K-9 units from the sheriff's department, coordinated foot searches, boat and aerial searches. Both a fixed-wing aircraft and a gyrocopter were used.

Marvel was found about 1 p.m. Sunday behind a house under construction on the Lake Murphysboro Access Road. He was taken by Jackson County Ambulance Service to St. Joseph Memorial Hospital in Murphysboro, but his injuries were not life-threatening, the release said.

Assisting deputies in the search were Illinois Department of Natural Resources police officers, Park Superintendent Robert Catt and park employees, Murphysboro/Pomona/Somerset volunteer firefighters, Ava Fire Department volunteer firefighters, U.S. Forest Service workers, Illinois State Police and Secretary of State Police.