Body Found in Submerged Car Is Identified as Wife of Milt Pappas

A body found in a car submerged in a shallow pond was positively identified Saturday as that of Carole Pappas, the wife of former major league pitcher Milt Pappas. Carole Pappas disappeared almost five years ago.

There was no evidence of foul play, the Du Page County coroner and Wheaton police said at a news conference.

The body was found in the 1980 Buick Friday afternoon. Dental records, as well as clothing and jewelry found on the body, were used to identify Mrs. Pappas. Coroner Richard Ballinger said an autopsy revealed no evidence of trauma to the body.

Dental records as well as clothing and jewelry found on her body helped confirm her identity, Ballinger said.

Police Chief Carl Dobbs said it appeared that Mrs. Pappas was on her way home and accidently drove into the shallow pond.

Mrs. Pappas, who had just turned 42, was last seen at a shopping center in nearby Bloomingdale on Sept. 11, 1982.

For eight months after her disappearance, Milt Pappas, 48, kept his wife’s clothing hanging in her closet and her jewelry on her dresser. He finally moved her belongings to the basement in May 1983, a month before his current fiancee, Judi Bloome-Pappas, 35, moved in with him. They have a 2 1/2-year-old daughter.

Under Illinois law, a person must wait seven years from the date a spouse is reported missing before the spouse can be declared dead and remarriage can take place. “I don’t know what happens now,” Pappas said. “We were prepared to wait.”