Darick Langos toppled backward into the Chicago River and came up grinning. He tapped his head twice and splashed a little water into his scuba mask. Then he called out to the crew still aboard the boat bobbing in the water just south of the Cermak Road bridge.

“Love you! Bye,” he yelled.

With a whoosh, he sank down to the riverbed to peer through the murky green. But instead of collecting samples of water or aquatic life, Langos was searching for license plates and brand emblems from “a pile of cars” on the river floor.

The self-described Chaos Divers have been boating up and down the Chicago River for much of the week, canvassing for evidence to help crack a handful of long-cold missing persons cases.

The group, which shares its exploits on social media, has been crisscrossing the co

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