MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. – The Manatee County Sheriff’s Office confirmed Thursday that a body recently found along Interstate 75 was that of Giovanni Pelletier, a missing 18-year-old who had last been seen Aug. 1.

The body was preliminary identified as Pelletier last week, what the sheriff’s office said it determined based on evidence collected at the scene.

Dental records and further forensic testing was needed to reach Thursday’s conclusion, the sheriff’s office said in a news release. The cause of Pelletier’s death is still undetermined pending toxicology results, the release states, adding it could take several weeks for those to come down.

Detectives are pursuing leads and there remain no signs of foul play, investigators said.

News of Pelletier’s disappearance reached Central

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