Death investigation nearly nonstop, mayor says

Hanover Park police and the DuPage County Major Crimes Task Force Saturday continued to investigate the stabbing death of a 56-year-old woman.

Investigators worked nearly all through the night Friday and then got started again Saturday morning working on the case, Village President Rodney Craig said.

Vatisla Thakkar of Hanover Park was found unresponsive at 2:45 p.m. Thursday in front of a discount store where she worked at 5662 Arlington Drive East. She was pronounced dead at the hospital. An autopsy indicated she died of multiple stab wounds to the back.

The discovery of the victim led to an immediate lockdown of two nearby grade schools as a safety precaution, but students were released at their usual time.

Craig praised the schools for having good plans in place to keep children safe.

Police on Saturday indicated that the neighborhood is safe in the wake of the crime, Craig said.