Tragic Discovery of Missing Teen in Florida
Authorities in Florida have confirmed the tragic discovery of 18-year-old Giovanni Pelletier, a North Carolina teen who went missing during a visit to his father’s family. His decomposing body was found in a retention pond off I-75 and State Road 70 on Friday, according to the Manatee County Sheriff's Office. The remains were formally identified on Saturday afternoon, bringing an end to a week-long search that involved both official and private efforts.
The location where Giovanni's body was found had already been searched by authorities on the first day of the operation. However, it was ultimately located by a private investigation group hired by the Pelletier family. While officials are still awaiting results from further testing, an autopsy is scheduled for Sunday, as reported by Gulf Coast News.
Giovanni vanished on August 1 while visiting Florida with his mother, Bridgette Pelletier, her fiancé, and his four siblings. Before leaving Raleigh, North Carolina, he had arranged via text with paternal relatives to pick him up in Englewood, Florida, and take him to his grandfather's home in Brevard County, over three hours away.
Bridgette expressed hesitation about allowing her son to travel alone but supported his desire to reconnect with family. However, within 30 minutes of being picked up, Giovanni sent a distressing message to his mother: "Mom help." According to Bridgette, her son's paternal grandfather later left her a voicemail claiming there had been an altercation, and that the teen's cousins had left him on the side of the road in Bradenton, Manatee County.
According to the sheriff's office, Giovanni had been in the car with his cousins on his father's side when he "suddenly began to act erratically before exiting the vehicle and walking away near SR70." His phone and backpack were abandoned on the highway, leaving the family devastated and without answers.
Bridgette, 34, told People that she saw the chilling text messages when she woke up around 6:20am, hours after Giovanni had texted around 2am. He had also tried to FaceTime her. The teen had also reached out to his aunt and father, asking for help when his mom didn't reply.
Bridgette received a missed call from one of Giovanni's cousins, who was in the car with him when he vanished. "He only called me that one time," she said. "And then no effort was made to communicate with me. No effort was made to come back to the house to let me know."
The family launched a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for a reward and resources for the search. Hours after his body was identified on Saturday, his mother posted a statement on social media expressing her grief. "My son was recently found after a desperate search by our family alone, and we are still facing an active investigation into his death. I am living every parent’s worst nightmare, trying to find the strength to give him the goodbye he deserves. Any funds raised now will provide crucial support to cover funeral, medical, and legal costs as we struggle to honor his memory through this unimaginable heartbreak."
Bridgette shared that Giovanni was from North Carolina but was visiting his father's side of the family in Florida. His parents were never married, but he was born in Florida and lived there until he was four years old. When he turned 18, Bridgette said he wanted to get to know his father's family. "He was craving the culture and the background from his dad's side of the family, and I couldn't give that to him," she said.
She added that there had been little communication with Giovanni's relatives and that they hadn’t helped them look for her son. After he disappeared, she said his paternal grandfather left her a message that there was an altercation on the side of the road between the cousins, and to "let him know when I found Giovanni."
Bridgette mentioned that one of Giovanni's cousins told her that they were smoking marijuana, and he started to panic. The cousin claimed Giovanni pulled out a knife on the side of the road, which Bridgette said was unlike her son.
Giovanni's aunt, Desiree, shared on Facebook that he was with three boys when he disappeared, whom he had never met in person. She posted a video on social media pleading for the public's help, and dismissing theories that her nephew was a runaway. "Giovanni is smart, kind, and full of life. He didn’t deserve this," the description read. "Our family is devastated, terrified, and doing everything in our power to bring him home — but we’re receiving very little help from officials, and we are being forced to search on our own."