VENICE, Fla. ( WWSB ) - A body has been found in a pond off of I-75 and State Road 70, near the area where a missing 18-year-old was last seen, the Manatee County Sheriff’s has confirmed.

Sheriff’s office spokesman Randy Warren said a decomposing body that appears to be a male was found in a retention pond near the southbound off ramp of the interstate.

Warren said deputies cannot yet confirm the identity of the body, but the sheriff’s office has been keeping the family of 18-year-old Giovanni Pelletier “informed of developments” in the case.

At 6 p.m., Warren said authorities were still working to remove the body from the lake, saying heavy afternoon rains has hampered their work.

Pelletier was last seen around 1:30 a.m. on Aug. 1 walking away from a vehicle near State Road 70 in M

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