Giovanni Pelletier, a teenager from North Carolina who went missing in Florida earlier this month, has been confirmed dead.
His family shared the news on Saturday, Aug. 9, one day after a body was found in the area where he was last seen. Police said they believe the body belongs to Giovanni, although an autopsy will confirm his identity. They also said there is no early evidence of foul play, but the investigation is still ongoing and the cause of death is unknown.
Giovanni’s mother, Bridgette Pelletier, asked for privacy for the family as they prepare funeral arrangements for her son, who had four younger siblings.
Giovanni went missing on Friday, Aug. 1, shortly after traveling to Florida with his mom, her fiancé Jeremy Brown, and his siblings. Before leaving Raleigh, Giovanni made plans through a family group chat to be picked up in Englewood, Florida, by relatives on his father’s side and taken to his grandfather’s home in Brevard County.
Within 30 minutes of being picked up, Giovanni texted his mother, who was asleep at the time, saying: “Mom help.”
Bridgette said she had been worried about him going alone, but she wanted to support his decision to reconnect with his father’s side of the family.
She later learned from other family members that there had been a conflict between Giovanni and his cousins. One cousin reportedly said they had smoked marijuana together, and Giovanni began to panic and argue. The cousin claimed Giovanni pulled out a knife, but after the cousin took it away, Giovanni ran off.
Bridgette said this behavior was not like her son and believes he may have felt scared and outnumbered.
On Friday, Aug. 8, a man’s body was found in a retention pond near I-75 and State Road 70, close to where Giovanni was last seen. At the time, authorities could not confirm it was him but kept the family updated.
Giovanni had recently graduated from Fuquay-Varina High School and was remembered by his mother as a caring and protective person. In her post on Aug. 9, she wrote that she was “living every parent’s worst nightmare, trying to find the strength to give him the goodbye he deserves.”
