Ruby McKenzie
Local and federal authorities are looking for 22-year-old Gabby Petito, who was reported missing by her family over the weekend after she had been traveling with her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie.
Laundrie returned to the pair’s North Port, Florida, home earlier this month without Petito and is now refusing to talk to authorities, police say. Petito’s family and their attorneys have pleaded with Laundrie and his family to cooperate and help bring the girl home.
An attorney for the Laundrie family said in a Tuesday statement his family is “remaining in the background at this juncture and will have no further comment” on the advice of counsel.
Petito is White, about 5 feet, 5 inches tall and 110 pounds, with blonde hair, blue eyes and several tattoos, including one on her finger and one on her forearm that reads, “Let it be.” The FBI has set up a national hotline — 1-800-CALLFBI (225-5324) — to receive tips.
See also: Gabby Petito’s Autopsy Report is out check it here
Here’s what we know about the timeline in the case of the missing woman.
June 2021
North Port Police Chief Todd Garrison said in a Thursday news briefing that Petito and Laundrie — who Garrison described as the woman’s fiancé — embarked on a cross-country trip in June.
They planned to travel in Petito’s white Ford van to the West Coast and visit state national parks across the Western United States, Garrison said.
She had been excited to share her journey with her family and others on social media, he said.
“She maintained regular contact with her family members during her travels, however that communication abruptly stopped around the end of August,” the police chief added.
August 12, 2021
Moab, Utah, police had an encounter with the couple on August 12, where officers described them as having “engaged in some sort of altercation.”
Although the two are described as getting into a physical fight following an argument, “both the male and female reported they are in love and engaged to be married and desperately didn’t wish to see anyone charged with a crime,” a report from officer Eric Pratt said.
At officers’ suggestion, the couple separated for the night, the report said, which described Petito as “confused and emotional.”
“After evaluating the totality of the circumstances, I do not believe the situation escalated to the level of a domestic assault as much as that of a mental health crisis,” officer Daniel Robbins wrote in the police report. No charges were filed.
The couple each had their own cell phones in case of emergency, the report added.
Last week of August
Petito’s family told police they were last in contact with her during the last week of August, North Port police said. Before that last communication, Petito is believed to have been in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, police say.
In a Thursday news conference, Petito family attorney Richard Stafford said the family’s last communication with Petito was August 30, but they do not believe the message they received was from Petito.
- On Friday, Stafford shared a timeline of events, as the family knows it:
- On August 24, Petito FaceTimed with her mother and told her she was leaving Utah and heading to the Teton range in Wyoming.
- On August 25, there were multiple texts between Petito and her mother. The young woman’s family believes she was in the Tetons on this date.
- On August 27, there were more texts between Petito and her mother, during which her family believes she remained in the Tetons.
- On August 30, her family receives their last text from Petito. They doubt she wrote that text. According to Stafford, that message read, “No service in Yosemite.”
September 1, 2021
Laundrie returned to the couple’s North Port home, where his parents also live, on September 1, according to police.
The white vehicle Petito and Laundrie had been traveling in was later recovered by police at the home. It was processed and “there was some material in there” that authorities will be going through, North Port police spokesperson Josh Taylor said at a news briefing on Wednesday.
September 11, 2021
After not being able to get in touch with her, Petito’s family — who lives in New York — reported her missing on Saturday evening to the Suffolk County, New York, Police Department.
North Port authorities went to Laundrie’s home on Saturday night asking to speak to him and his family but “we were essentially handed the information for their attorney,” Taylor, the police spokesperson, said.
“That is the extent of our conversation with them,” Taylor said.
September 16
In a letter read by Stafford, the Petito family attorney, during police’s Thursday news briefing, the missing woman’s family begged for Laundrie’s family to help in the investigation.
“Please, if you or your family have any decency left, please, tell us where Gabby is located,” Stafford said. “Tell us if we are even looking in the right place. All we want is for Gabby to come home. Please help us make that happen.”
He said Petito’s family reached out to Laundrie’s family earlier this month for any information on Petito’s whereabouts, but his family refused to answer.
“We haven’t been able to sleep or eat, and our lives are falling apart,” the Petito family’s letter added.
September 17
After several days of both Petito’s family and police pleading with Laundrie’s family to cooperate in the investigation, Laundrie’s family requests police to come to their home Friday, where they share they haven’t seen Brian since Tuesday, according to Taylor, the police spokesperson.
“We’ve been trying all week to talk to his family, to talk to Brian, and now they’ve called us here on Friday, we’ve gone to the home, and they’re saying now they have not seen their son,” Taylor told CNN’s Chris Cuomo Friday night.”It is another twist in this story.”
Laundrie family attorney Steven Bertolino told CNN on Friday night that “the whereabouts of Brian Laundrie are currently unknown. The FBI is currently at the Laundrie residence removing property to assist in locating Brian. As of now the FBI is now looking for both Gabby and Brian.”
The FBI declined to comment on that statement.
Source: CNN
