GRANITE CITY – Madison County Coroner Stephen P. Nonn issued a release Tuesday afternoon regarding the deaths of two people in one Granite City Home.
Robert S. Benda, 61, and Dorothy M. Diak, 55, both of Granite City, were found dead inside a residence in the 1700 block of Spruce Street in Granite City at 7:30 p.m. on Friday, June 22, 2018. They were found by a concerned family member and were pronounced dead at 8:04 p.m. that evening by Madison County Coroner’s Investigator Diondra Horner, the release stated. At this time, no foul play is suspected in the deaths, which are being blamed on drugs at this time.
According to 2018 drug overdose death statistics sent from Nonn to Riverbender.com on June 20, 2018, as many as 46 cases of overdose deaths had been investigated at that time. Of those, the majority were caused by Fentanyl – with 14 being confirmed to be that drug alone and two pending toxicology reports. Fentanyl combined with heroin has claimed three confirmed and eight pending, and mixed with methamphetamine has been confirmed to have taken five lives this year and one is still pending.
It has not been released to the media what drugs are believed to have been involved in this particular case. The release stated Benda was located in the living room and Diak was located in the kitchen of the residence at the time of their deaths.
Routine tests for the presence of alcohol and other drugs will be performed, the release says, and the incident remains under investigation by the Granite City Police Department. Funeral arrangements have been made through Irwin Funeral Home in Granite City, Illinois.
