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Coroner: Willowbrook student may have choked on food

A 15-year-old Willowbrook High School student who died last week may have choked on a piece of food, the DuPage County coroner's office said Monday.

Abdul Jalal was apparently choking in the school's lunchroom shortly after noon Sept. 19. Villa Park paramedics began lifesaving measures on the unresponsive teen and rushed him to Elmhurst Memorial Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 1:09 p.m. in the emergency room.

Abdul had Down syndrome, but the disorder did not appear to have any bearing on his death, the coroner's office said.

His official cause of death is pending autopsy and toxicology results.

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