Found Deceased IL - Daniel Sotelo, 26, & Natally Brookson, both found deceased, Chicago, 30 April 2022

[Poppyflower]

I've seen articles that say he was last seen by his roommate when dropped off at Roosevelt train station and he said he was headed up north.

I've also seen articles that say he was last seen on Racine near campus.

"Brookson’s boyfriend, 26-year-old Daniel Sotelo, is missing. Sotelo was last seen April 29 near the 700 block of South Racine Avenue near the UIC campus, according to a police flyer. Sotelo is a UIC grad student."

Missing UIC Student Natally Brookson Found Dead; Boyfriend Still Missing

A body found May 2 in Lake Michigan was identified as 22-year-old Natally Brookson. Her boyfriend, Daniel Sotelo, who disappeared around the same time, is missing. His family is hosting a search party Sunday.

blockclubchicago.org

I wonder which is more accurate.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

@sbuxsburbs I guess I made the assumption he took the train "away from it all" and clearly don't know anything about the locations and trains. Sorry about that.
I don't think they had a pact to end their lives, though. Just my opinion.

 

[Snoop Sister]

The information given about both NB and DS seems very convoluted. Both disappearing on the same day…there most be correlation somehow. IMO

 

[scriabina]

I also remember April 30 had crazy weather in Chicago--because i was out in it. Mild day but then around 5pm total downpour, hail, thunder, lightening, it was crazy, some areas outside of the city even had spotted tornadoes. I'm thinking, were they at the beach and got swept out into the water during this crazy storm? It would not really have been warm enough to swim in Lake Michigan right now though. There is no bridge up in that area to jump off of (if they were committing suicide by jumping into the lake together.) It's really just parks and beaches, maybe some piers that are not very high up.

Wow, I hadn't thought of the weather angle, but you're right! I'm also from the area and the change in weather was sudden. It was nice pleasant weather and I biked to the store for curbside pickup. Suddenly once I got to the store it became dark and then on my bike ride home it began to pour with wind, lightning and big chunks of hail painfully whacking me on the head. It was actually pretty scary! It does seem to be a weird coincidence that the day they went missing was the day of that fleeting ominous storm. I wonder what time Sotelo was last seen.

 

[scriabina]

Another UIC student was murdered (in a murder-suicide) on May 5 inside the laundry room of an Edgewater Beach apartment building. Coincidentally, Natally Brookson was also of Edgewater.

 

[GraceG]

Wow, I hadn't thought of the weather angle, but you're right! I'm also from the area and the change in weather was sudden. It was nice pleasant weather and I biked to the store for curbside pickup. Suddenly once I got to the store it became dark and then on my bike ride home it began to pour with wind, lightning and big chunks of hail painfully whacking me on the head. It was actually pretty scary! It does seem to be a weird coincidence that the day they went missing was the day of that fleeting ominous storm. I wonder what time Sotelo was last seen.

The time would be helpful. I have a website saved to my desktop from NOAA which shows historical radar but you need a time. I remember the storms - we had a tornado warning in our village and went to the basement and it hardly rained at our house with little wind. The storms split as they approached the city with the worst going north and south of us.

 

[Unsolved]

I can't find one for her. I wonder if its been deleted?

Probably - I found this one but nothing on it:

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com

UIC Women's Leadership and Resource Center update:

Support & Resources regarding UIC students Brittany Kinlow, Natally Brookson, and Daniel Sotelo

emails.illinois.edu

 

[minneolo]

I have been around not quite as long and don't remember any suicide by drowning cases.

I remember Taleka Patrick, she drowned but I think she was delusional and suffering and fell into the water.

Genuinely curious about other cases you can remember. Thanks!

I thought of one- Timothy Cunningham. Such a sad case. Hmmm...after reading more about him, I'm not sure they really know what happened.

When I think drowning, I'm not thinking take many drugs, then jump in or jumping from far up. Maybe that is considered suicide by drowning?

I also recall a case in New England of a woman doctor, who had gone for a walk in a park with her mother and then subsequently was found in a pond in the park. The conclusion was self-harm via drowning.

While I typically am quick to presume parter-violence in many cases, this one sounds like mutually-coordinated suicide to me, sadly.

 

[azure]

If this was a manhunt, I think we'd know by now. I'd also expect to see a lot more in the news.

 

[SimplyCass]

Both Daniel and Natally were last seen 4/30.

Daniel's graduation ceremony would have been 5/7, at 2 p.m. I believe he would be under the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Spring Commencement Ceremonies | Commencement | University of Illinois Chicago

There is no evidence released that even hints that his academics were in disarray. Respectfully, any discussion of a potential Jennifer Pan-like situation is a wild rumor.

 

[Poppyflower]

I don't remember reading about her coworker.

Search Continues For Missing Chicago Student After Girlfriend Found Dead In Lake | Oxygen Official Site

A Chicago college student who disappeared in April was found dead in Lake Michigan as the search continues for her missing boyfriend.

www.oxygen.com

Brookson reportedly withdrew for the spring semester, according to CBS News. Brookson’s co-worker, Thet Wai Aung, told the outlet that the missing woman quit her job on the day she disappeared.

Aung said Brookson hadn’t expressed any concerns for her safety.

“No, she never told me anything like that,” said Aung. “There’s a lot of missing piece that [don't] make sense.”

 

[Janitor101]

Did.Natally own a car? How did she get to and from work? She reportedly quit her job the last day she was seen but how did she leave the premises? If she was on foot and hopped on a train, wouldn't CCTV have recorded when she got on and off and whether she was travelling alone? Same with Mr. Sotelo. I think the detectives know a lot more than they're saying, and are patiently waiting to get ahold of their cell phone and financial records which doesn't happen overnight. If they felt she met a violent end there would have been telltale marks on her body and an ensuing manhunt.

 

[Janitor101]

Does anyone know if you have to purchase a CTA card to be able to ride these trains free of charge and whether there is a date and timestamp of when the card owner uses the pass?

 

[citizen_sleuth]

I've also seen varying reports as to the day Daniel went missing. Some say April 30 (which is when NB was last seen leaving work) but more recent reports say April 29.

Missing man linked to 22-year-old UIC student found dead: reports – WGN9 (May 14, 2022)
<snipped & BBM>
Daniel Sotelo was last seen near the 1700 block of S. Racine on April 29, according to a missing person flyer. Authorities describe Sotelo as a 5-foot-8-inches, weighing 155 pounds with brown hair, eyes, and a medium skin complexion.

The 26-year-old was reported missing one day before Natally Brookson, who was last seen leaving work at Friedman Place, located in the 5500 block of N. Maplewood Ave, on April 30.

Missing UIC student Natally Brookson found dead; boyfriend Daniel Sotelo still missing – CBS News (May 12, 2022)
<snipped & BBM>
Natally Brookson, 22, was last seen leaving work on April 30 in the Budlong Woods neighborhood, according to a missing person flyer.

[...]

Sotelo also was last seen on April 30 -- he was dropped off at the CTA train at the Roosevelt 'L' stop.

 

[Bobby Pods]

I mean, people jump to domestic violence because that tends to be the reason more times than not (at least compared to gang activity).

Why would a gang kill her and leave her to be found and not kill him at the same time?

Gangs typically don't move bodies...this has no indicia of gang activity.

 

[Bobby Pods]

Does anyone know if you have to purchase a CTA card to be able to ride these trains free of charge and whether there is a date and timestamp of when the card owner uses the pass?

If they had monthly passes, they will have information of the rider, when it gets scanned.

 

[Janitor101]

Thanks, Both Pods. So if she used the L train as her primary means of transportation, detectives would know each time her card was scanned on the train. It would be helpful to know if she worked days or evenings at her place of work. I guess we can rest assured that every bit of CCTV footage is still being scoured to identify where she got off the train and maybe whether or not she was being followed or travelling with a companion.

 

[citizen_sleuth]

Thanks, Both Pods. So if she used the L train as her primary means of transportation, detectives would know each time her card was scanned on the train. It would be helpful to know if she worked days or evenings at her place of work. I guess we can rest assured that every bit of CCTV footage is still being scoured to identify where she got off the train and maybe whether or not she was being followed or travelling with a companion.

There are over 33,000 CCTV cameras installed across CTA's bus and rail system, according to the CTA. So unless the cameras were conveniently malfunctioning or non-operational at the time, both Daniel and Natally were almost certainly captured on surveillance camera if one or both of them rode the train.

 

[Janitor101]

There are over 33,000 CCTV cameras installed across CTA's bus and rail system, according to the CTA. So unless the cameras were conveniently malfunctioning or non-operational at the time, both Daniel and Natally were almost certainly captured on surveillance camera if one or both of them rode the train.

Thank you, citizen sleuth! Since I'm old as dirt and know nothing about cell phone technology,. do you need to have the actual cell phone records in order to tell where each of their cell phones last "pinged"?

 

[NervousNellie]

The family has a FB page (Sister is an Admin) dedicated to finding Daniel.

Log into Facebook

Log into Facebook to start sharing and connecting with your friends, family, and people you know.

www.facebook.com