Plainfield Boater's Death Being Investigated As Homicide: Reports

PLAINFIELD, IL — A Plainfield man, known by the Chicago boating community as "Captain Bill," was found dead Saturday morning when his body was pulled out of the DuSable Harbor in Chicago, according to multiple reports.

The Cook County Medical Examiner's Office identified him as the 63-year-old Nabil Abzal, found he died by drowning and ruled his death a homicide, the Chicago Tribune reported.

First responders responded to several 911 calls just after 3 a.m. Saturday, reporting a man had fallen from a dock at 200 N. Lake Shore Drive, according to a report from CWB Chicago. He was pronounced dead at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.

"Captain Bill, as he was referred by most people, was kind of like the mayor of the dock," a boater told ABC7 of Abzal. "He would be here every day, because he was doing charters pretty much every day during the summer," said Alan Dutkiewicz. "He knew everybody always a smile on his face, up early, well-groomed all the time for a boat captain. He took a lot of pride in his appearance. You know if you were doing something, he would always lend a hand."

The coroner's classification means someone else caused the man's death, but it does not necessarily imply a criminal act occurred. Officials did not say what prompted the homicide conclusion.

Chicago police do not have any suspects in custody, ABC7 reported.