Police in Florida found a body in the last known area of a missing North Carolina teen, who had been vacationing when he vanished.
WRAL reported that a deceased male was found by the Sheriff’s Office in a retention pond at State Route 70, at the southbound off-ramp of Interstate 75 in Manatee County.
While the identity of the body has not yet been released, it reportedly was found in the area that missing Giovanni Pelletier’s, 18, cellphone was last pinged.
As CrimeOnline previously reported, Pelletier was last seen in Mims on August 1. Pelletier’s aunt told WRAL that they had been visiting the fiancée’s family of Pelletier’s mother in Englewood, when Giovanni met up with his cousins from his estranged father’s side.
Charlotte County police said the cousins claimed Pelletier suddenly began behaving “erratically” and unexplainedly walked away.
However, private investigator Shelley Croft told WFLA that 21 minutes after leaving Englewood with his cousins, Pelletier sent his mother a text message, reading “Mom help me.”
The cousins allegedly claimed Pelletier walked out of the car near State Road 70 in Manatee County. His backpack and cellphone were recovered from the area.
The family said the cousins’ stories seem to have some inconsistencies, and they question their possible involvement, according to WRLA.
This is an ongoing investigation and anyone with information is encouraged to call the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office at 941-639-2101.
Check back for updates.
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Author: Shanon Quaranta, Contributor
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