Family of 18-year-old found dead in Bradenton pond calls for FBI investigation скачать в хорошем качестве

Family of 18-year-old found dead in Bradenton pond calls for FBI investigation

As you exit I-75 in Bradenton, a wooden cross stands near the retention pond where 18-year-old Giovanni Pelletier’s body was recovered on Friday evening. He disappeared on Aug. 1 after leaving Charlotte County at 1:30 a.m. with cousins he’d never met before. Family says his last text messages were pleas for help at 1:51 a.m. "We understand that he got out of the vehicle and was acting erratic, based on the people that he was with," Randy Warren, a spokesperson for the Manatee County Sheriff's Office, said. However, Pelletier's family questions that story. They've launched a Change.org petition to get answers and voice frustration with the investigation. They’re frustrated it took eight days to find Giovanni — calling out that it was a family friend, not law enforcement, who discovered the teen's body. They want the FBI to take over the case. The sheriff's office says search teams were not out on Friday but did scour the area for days. "A lot of these areas were searched, but unfortunately, nothing was seen until Friday, when a family member was walking by this pond," Warren explained. Giovanni Pelletier's autopsy showed no signs of foul play According to the medical examiner, no signs of foul play or trauma were found during the autopsy, and the cause of death is pending toxicology. However, authorities say the investigation is far from over. They're still working to find out why Giovanni got out of the car and how he ended up crossing several lanes of traffic before ending up in the retention pond. "Did he slide in there? There's a lot of theories of what could have happened," the sheriff's office spokesperson said. "Toxicology could be critical here, but unfortunately, they're dealing with the condition of the body, and that can limit even finding answers." And though the family is questioning the coordination of the investigation, which spans three counties — Charlotte, Manatee and Brevard — the Manatee County Sheriff's Office says it's collaborating. "Law enforcement agencies do this all the time, and we are here to assist them, which is what we were doing in the early part of this as a missing person case. We'll continue to lean on them for a lot of the background," Warren said. 10 Tampa Bay News reached out to the sheriff's office for a response on the Change.org petition and is waiting to hear back.