VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — The body recovered from a pond by a Virginia Beach apartment Monday is 12-year-old Juan Sebastian Mejia Acevedo, police said Monday afternoon.
No cause of death was provided, but police said they are investigating the circumstances.
FULL PRESS CONFERENCE: VBPD Chief Neudigate gives update on body found in water near where 12-year-old was last seen
The body was pulled out of a pond around 1 p.m. near the Cambria at Cornerstone apartments off South Independence Boulevard during VBPD's search effort for the boy. The pond is near the 200 block of Mica Avenue — the address where police say Acevedo was last seen by his parents Friday morning.
“We had no specific indication that these ponds were an area of interest but we did not want to leave any stone unturned,” Neudigate said.
Police had been investigating the incident as an abduction based on a purported ransom request sent to Acevedo's parents.
VBPD's marine patrol used sonar technology to locate the body in the water, Neudigate said.
Police didn't elaborate further on the circumstances surrounding Acevedo's death, but Neudigate said he thinks the ice that formed during the recent cold weather "played a big role."
Acevedo's family has been notified by police, Neudigate added, and the AMBER Alert was officially canceled Monday afternoon around 3 p.m.
Watch: Ransom request prompts abduction investigation for Virginia Beach boy
Acevedo was first reported missing Friday night, police say. His parents believed he was at a friend's house, but they called police around 9 p.m. when he hadn't returned home.
Police started investigating Acevedo's disappearance as a possible abduction after his parents received a troubling message: News 3 learned that while his parents were on Facebook Live spreading awareness about their son's disappearance, they received a ransom request for their child via WhatsApp. After learning of this, VBPD treated the case as an abduction and contacted state police to send an AMBER Alert, which was issued on Saturday around 7 a.m.
Neudigate shared that either the family or someone on behalf of the family paid $500, but after that, there was no additional communication. When asked by the media if the ransom note could have been a scam, Neudigate responded, “This would not be the first time that that type of scam has been perpetuated on a family that is going through difficult circumstances. Is that a possibility? It absolutely is."
He added that the possibility of the ransom being a scam was one of police's theories, but not treating it as an actual threat or kidnapping would be negligent.
Police haven’t identified potential suspect(s) behind the ransom, but Neudigate says it's still part of their investigation.
“Unfortunately, because it involved out-of-state transactions, we need search warrants, subpoenas, to try to identify who that individual was who received that money," he shared.
Watch: Ransom request prompts abduction investigation
Police say it's too early to tell if they'll open a homicide investigation or if Acevedo's death will be ruled accidental. His body is being sent to the medical examiner’s office to determine a cause of death.
“It’s too early for me to speculate… We just recovered him. As we get more information and we can confirm facts and not what we believe occurred, we will get that out to the community," Neudigate said.
Neudigate thanked the community for the outpouring of support and care during police's search for the boy.
"This has been a comprehensive effort to try to find this young man for almost the last 72 hours and it’s unfortunate that this is the outcome," he said.
He also shared condolences with Acevedo's family, saying, "we will be there to support them."
