ZACHARY, La. (AP) — The body of a teenager who had been missing for more than two weeks was discovered in a retention pond near a subdivision in Zachary, authorities said.
The East Baton Rouge Parish Coroner's Office positively identified the body Thursday as that of Donovan Jones Jr., 19, of Zachary, WAFB-TV reported. A cause of death has not been released.
Jones had been missing from his home since Feb. 16. Family and friends have been searching for Jones in the Meadow View subdivision, as well as its surrounding areas. On Feb. 20, they held a prayer vigil for him at New Pilgrim Baptist Church in Zachary.
Nearly a week after he went missing, the family offered a $10,000 cash reward to try to “bring DJ home.”
A group of kids spotted Jones’ body in the retention pond while riding four-wheelers around 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Zachary Police said. Assistant Police Chief Darryl Lawrence said officers responded to the scene and then contacted the coroner’s office and the Louisiana State Police Crime Lab.
“We concentrated a lot of resources and time in this area to locate him,” Lawrence said. “It is a little disappointing that we didn’t find him earlier.”
Rhonda Matthews, Jones' cousin, stood by with those close to him as authorities converged.
“You want to hang on to hope because you got to get through something this traumatic,” Matthews told WAFB.
“He was very loving,” Matthews said of Jones. "When I tell you he was a sweetheart, he was a sweetheart."
The case remains under investigation.
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