Mother of man found dead in metro-east lake doubts he entered water on his own
The mother of the 25-year-old man whose body was pulled from the lake in Frank Holten State Park Friday is wondering how he got there.
Demontray M. Collins, of East St. Louis was found floating by a pair of kayakers on July 4. He was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:41 a.m., according to St. Clair County Coroner Calvin Dye Sr.
Regina White said there was no way “Tray,” as he was known to family and friends, would get into any water on his own. He couldn’t swim, she said.
“One thing that I do know is he was not going to get in any water,” said White, who cared for Collins as his foster mom since he was 2 and later adopted him. “He did not get into that water … uh-uh … no water. Tray was not going to get into no water.”
Illinois State Police said in a statement Monday that the investigation into Collins’ death is ongoing and that no additional information is available for release.
Collins was ID’d by a book bag
White said she learned through social media that a body had been found in the lake at Frank Holten State Park, but didn’t know it was her son until a couple hours later when she got a knock on the door.
A pair of state troopers asked her whether her son carried a book bag and whether she could identify it if they showed it to her. They also asked if she was aware he had a citation to appear in court.
“I told them yes, it was for June 3. The citation that was in the book bag,” White said. “That’s how they connected him to the body that was found in the lake.”
White was not allowed to see her son’s body because of the advanced decomposition. She said police believe he had been underwater before floating to the top, but they could not tell her how long he may have been in the water before the kayakers discovered the body.
She has not heard from investigators since they came to her door on July 4. She is trying to be patient as she waits for answers, but admits it is not easy.
“There’s a lot of anxiety you go through as you wait to get an answer to something like this,” she said.
LaDonna McCaleb, Collins’ aunt, said the whole family has been anxious as the investigation progresses.
“My nephew would not get in that water. How he got there is a mystery to our family,” she said. “We are waiting for the conclusion of the Illinois State Police investigation and the autopsy report. Hopefully we will find out something.”
White said she didn’t know of any disputes Collins might have had with another person or what could have motivated a crime against him.
Both White and McCaleb expressed gratitude for the kayakers who discovered Collins’ body and alerted authorities.
“Without them, my nephew may have been missing and we would not know where to look,” McCaleb said. “I wish I could meet them and tell them face to face thank you.”
White added: “That body belonged to somebody’s child. He is somebody’s brother, uncle, cousin, nephew. That male body was a human being. It turned out that body belonged to me and my family. We are all eternally grateful to them.”
Who was Tray Collins?
As White talked about her son, she became overcome by her emotions.
“Tray was a good person. He was not a trouble maker. He has never been in trouble with the law,” she said. “He was just a fun-loving young man. Everybody who has heard and is hearing this news is shocked. He was not the kind of person you could expect to hear this kind of news about.
“He was a people person. He loved fun. He loved to dance. He loved his family. Everybody who knew Tray loved him. He was that person.”
Collins had a very limited history with the law in St. Clair County that includes only a fine for not carrying a valid ticket onto the MetroLink. In January, however, he was evicted from his home and has since faced a series of trespassing charges including one on state property, according to records in the circuit court.
White said she last saw her son on June 28, on her birthday.
“He gave me a hug and told me happy birthday,” she said. “He was his usual jovial self.”
Collins was a 2019 graduate of East St. Louis Senior High School. His mother said he had a talent for drawing and hoped to go back to school to develop his artistic skills. He also loved to dance and eating soul food.
“He was not a fan of microwaved food, or mashed potatoes from the box, or french fries from the bag,” White said. “He wanted real food, fries and mashed made from peeled potatoes.”
Not the first son White lost
Collins is not the first son White has lost. On March 4, 2020, Leon White died when his car hit a tree in Centreville. Friends and family called him “Ralph.”
“I was just coming back to life from that,” White said. “Ralph’s birthday is June 26 and mine is June 28. I’ve been celebrating his birthday every year. I was thinking I was coming back around. Now this has happened. I’m going back down.”
Collins and White left behind two sisters and a brother. Collins was the youngest, having legally joined the family with his adoption at age 10. But he belonged to them all along, his mother said.
“There was no difference between him and my other children,” she said. “I treated all of them the same. Tray is my son.”
This story was originally published July 9, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
