UPDATE: The body has been identified as Javion Batiste by the Iberia Parish Coroner’s Office. 

The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office confirmed that deputies discovered a body early Friday off Landry Road.

IPSO officials said the body was discovered around 7 a.m. near Park Elementary in a sugar cane field.

Katherine Breaux with the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office said the identification of the body will come from the Iberia Parish Coroner.

The discovery comes almost a week since the disappearance of Javion Batiste, a Youngsville 18-year-old whose vehicle was found in New Iberia on July 15. 

Officials have not released a name confirming it is Javion Batiste.

The family of Javion were near the area of the found body Friday morning. Delondrea Batiste, Javion’s aunt, said the family were still waiting for the identification of the body.

It was a horrific day for the family as they wait for confirmation. Thursday night, there was some hope.

Family and friends of Batiste were assisted by members of the community near the intersection of Admiral Doyle Drive and St. Jude Avenue Thursday with ATVs, water and even a drone to scan the city for any sign of Javion.

The family appreciated the support of the New Iberia community.

The family said with their few connections in the New Iberia, the search party was a blessing. Javion’s cousin LaDanna Porter said when word of Javion’s disappearance initially broke she surveyed areas of Dale Street and City Park, but was unsure where to start.

“We didn’t really know where to go,” Porter said. “We needed 4-wheelers and people to really try to look for him.”

Porter said she got in touch with Theola Jackson, a Grand Marais relative, who immediately went to work organizing local help with the search.

“We communicated over the phone, she even got someone to come in with a drone,” Porter said.

The story of Javion’s disappearance touched more than just friends and family, however. When Ninia Bouillion heard about Javion’s disappearance, she felt that she had to contribute.

“I read the article and was very pothered,” Bouillion said. I felt like the community wasn’t helping, no mother should have to set up a search party herself, the community should be doing something.”

When asked about what Javion was doing in New Iberia, his aunt Delondrea Batiste still seemed to be confused as to why his car ended up in the city. As a Youngsville resident, Batiste said Javion stayed “from Youngsville to Broussard” and hardly ever ventured to the area.

“He would never have come to New Iberia,” she said.

According to the New Iberia Police Department, Javion’s vehicle was discovered Monday in the 500 block of Cobb Avenue. The department noted that the vehicle was said to have last been driven by Javion, who had already been reported missing.

As the day wore on under the summer heat, the Batiste family along with community members gathered for a prayer circle with candles for the discovery of Javion.

It was a moment of intense emotions, with several family members breaking down in tears as the small group prayed for Javion to be found and the family to get the answers they need.