Police said an autopsy is being conducted on a body pulled from Frenchman’s Bay in Pickering to determine if it is that of missing Ajax teen Mitchell Somerville.
The body was found on Sunday while search crews were looking for the 17-year-old, who was last seen more than a week ago.
While police have not confirmed the body is that of the missing Ajax teen, police told reporters on Sunday that the body “appears to be” that of Somerville.
Insp. Bruce Kovack of Durham Regional Police said members of Somerville’s family were present during the search.
“Our investigators would like to find out the last moments of Mitchell,” said Kovack.
He asked that anyone with information about Somerville’s whereabouts before he went missing contact police.
The body was taken to Toronto’s Centre of Forensic Sciences for identification. Police said they will wait for the results of an autopsy to not only confirm the identity of the body, but also the cause of death.
Kovack said the body appears to have been in the water for “some time.”
Despite the fact the body’s identity has yet to be confirmed, many took to Twitter and Facebook on Sunday to express their condolences to the Somerville family.
Somerville was last seen at a McDonald’s in Whitby, Ont. on Sept. 21.
Some of the Grade 11 student’s belongings, including his backpack, were later located at Bruce Hanscombe Park in Pickering.
The discovery led police to search Frenchman’s Bay.
Somerville was a member of the Ontario Blue Jays team from the 2012-2013 season.
On Sept. 27 the team issued a news release asking for the public’s help in locating the teen. The news release described Somerville as a “talented athlete.”
“Mitchell is a high level student-athlete with an extremely bright future both on and off the field,” read the news release.
