PORTLAND, Maine — A body was recovered from Maquoit Bay, in the area where wardens and law enforcement officials were searching for a missing Freeport teenager.
Theo Ferrara, 14, had been missing since Thursday evening, and search efforts started on Friday morning.
A marine patrol aircraft spotted the body near Bunganuc Point in the bay around 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, according to the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife.
The Freeport Police Department and the Maine Warden Service confirmed in a presser at 4 p.m. on Tuesday that the body was identified as Ferrara.
"We're all human. We all feel it. It's devastating for all of us," Freeport Police Chief Nate Goodman said at the presser. "This is not the outcome we wanted."
The cause of death has not yet been determined, Goodman said.
The superintendent for RSU 5, where Ferrara was a student, offered condolences to Ferrara's family and friends and support for the community on behalf of the discovery through an RSU 5 Facebook post on Tuesday afternoon.
"It is with a heavy heart that I write this letter to inform you that this afternoon, Theo Ferrara was found deceased," Jean Skorapa wrote. "Our sincere condolences to Theo's family and friends. During this time, as the school community processes this news and copes with grief, the school district will offer counseling and bereavement support to all students and staff."
According to Goodman, the investigation will remain ongoing over the next several months.
This story is developing and will be updated.
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