Body found in Rock River is missing Rockford man, sheriff says

OREGON – A body found Tuesday morning in the Rock River is that of a missing Rockford man, authorities have confirmed.

The body of Carter McGowan was found about 11 a.m. in the 4300 block of North Route 2 – midway between Oregon and Byron – by an individual searching for fossils along the river, Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle said.

McGowan’s family on Wednesday issued a news release stating the family had been officially informed by the Ogle County coroner that Carter was recovered Tuesday from the Rock River north of Oregon.

“We deeply appreciate the love, thoughts and prayers that have surrounded and comforted us since January, and we thank everyone who has participated in search efforts in the water and on the ground,” the family said in the release. “This process has shown us some of the best of humanity, and we are fortunate and grateful for our family and friends who have cared for us so much.”

McGowan, who was 22 at the time, was declared a missing person Jan. 22, Rockford police records show.

On the day McGowan went missing, his mother had escorted him to a doctor’s appointment at the UW Health Clinic on Marchesano Drive in Rockford, Arlen Harms of Rochelle, McGowan’s grandfather, said in an interview with Shaw Local in June.

He said McGowan, who is autistic, was nervous going into the appointment and abruptly left in the middle of it. His mother, thinking he had gone to the bathroom, started to get worried when he didn’t return. She was looking around the office when an employee at the front desk told her that he had dashed out the front door.

Panicked, McGowan’s mother called friends and other family members who began searching the area, Harms said. With no sign of Carter, his mother called police to report him missing.

During an initial search, police found a jacket belonging to McGowan and footprints in the snow near the Rock River on the 15th Avenue bridge in Rockford. The discovery led officers to believe he had fallen into the river.

Carter graduated from Rockford East High School in 2019 and earned his associate of science degree from Rock Valley College in 2022.