Brother of former Mariano's owner found killed in Schaumburg house
The brother of the Mariano's grocery chain founder had been stabbed when authorities found his body, Schaumburg police said Tuesday.
Joseph Mariano, 64, was dead when officers responded to a 911 call requesting a well-being check at 12:13 a.m. Sunday on the 200 block of Dublin Lane.
Mariano, a former Arlington Heights police officer and juvenile detective, was the brother of Mariano's founder and former CEO Bob Mariano.
The Schaumburg Police Department issued the update on its homicide investigation about 4 p.m. Tuesday but did not provide any more details.
The Cook County medical examiner's office has conducted an autopsy of Joseph Mariano, but results and cause of death are pending.
Anyone with information related to the investigation is urged to call the Schaumburg Police Department Detective Division at (847) 882-3534.
Arlington Heights Police Deputy Chief Nick Pecora confirmed Mariano joined the department in November 1977 and left in May 1989 "to pursue other career opportunities."
"He was a patrol officer in the early part of his career and a juvenile detective," Pecora said.
Pecora said Mariano was shot in the line of duty in the late 1970s while investigating a suspicious sports car in the area of Algonquin and Goebbert roads.
"The driver of the vehicle ended up shooting him," Pecora said. "He survived the encounter."
Mariano returned to duty after recovering from the gunshot wound to his waistline, Pecora said.
After leaving the police department in 1989, Mariano owned a restaurant in Des Plaines until 2000. He then managed Old Town Pizza in Schaumburg until August 2012 when he joined Mariano's as a food service manager and still worked there, according to his LinkedIn page.
Attempts to reach Bob Mariano, who retired as CEO of Mariano's Fresh Market grocery chain in 2016, have been unsuccessful.
Schaumburg police are investigating Joseph Mariano's death with help from the Major Case Assistance Team.
• Daily Herald staff writer Doug T. Graham contributed to this report.