The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that the body of 18-year-old Giovanni Pelletier was recovered on 8 August from a retention pond near the southbound off-ramp of Interstate 75 at State Road 70 in Manatee County, Florida. The North Carolina resident had been missing since 1 August, when he left a family vacation in Englewood to visit paternal relatives. Pelletier’s disappearance drew widespread attention after he sent a brief text message reading “Mom, help” to his mother, Bridgette Pelletier, moments after departing with three cousins. According to the cousins’ account to investigators, he began acting erratically, exited the vehicle and walked away along the highway. His backpack and mobile phone were found near the pond a day before the body was located by a family-led search team. An initial autopsy performed by the District 12 Medical Examiner found no signs of foul play or visible trauma, but authorities say additional forensic testing is needed because of advanced decomposition. Detectives continue to investigate the circumstances leading to Pelletier’s death.