Gabby Petito was strangled three to four weeks before her corpse was discovered, Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue stated during a Tuesday press conference.
Blue would not comment on whether he suspected her then-boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, was involved. “We are entrusted with determining the cause and manner of death,” he explained. “It is up to law enforcement to determine who perpetrated the killing.”
According to him, Wyoming law requires that just the cause of death, strangling, and method of death, murder, be disclosed. On Sept. 21, Blue declared the death a murder.
“Nothing is clear in a scenario like this, therefore the cause of death requires research,” he explained.
The Wyoming coroner stated that the final report took weeks to complete due to the careful nature of the examination. Blue stated that they conducted a whole-body CAT scan and toxicological testing, as well as including a forensic pathologist and an archaeologist.
Blue stated that Petito was not pregnant at the time of her death, but otherwise failed to address the majority of reporters’ inquiries. When asked about the effect of the elements on Petito’s body, he stated, “All I can say is her body was out in the woods for three to four weeks.”
He also noticed the amount of attention this matter is receiving on social media and in the news. “It’s sad that not many fatalities receive the same kind of publicity as this one,” he added.
“Gabby Petito’s death at such a young age is tragic,” said Steven Bertolino, the Laundrie family attorney, in a statement to NewsNation. “While Brian Laundrie is now charged with illegal use of Gabby’s debit card, Brian is only being investigated in connection with Gabby Petito’s death. “Brian is still missing at this moment, and whenever he is discovered, we will resolve the pending fraud accusation against him.”
Petito disappeared while on a cross-country road vacation in a modified camper van with her lover Brian Laundrie. The journey was extensively chronicled on social media until it unexpectedly came to an end, purportedly in Wyoming. The pair chronicled the majority of their journey, which began in July, on a YouTube Vlog titled “VAN LIFE.”
Petito, 22, was reported missing by her parents on Sept. 11 after failing to return calls and texts for several days. Petito’s corpse was discovered Sept. 19 in Wyoming, just outside Grand Teton National Park.
It’s been weeks since any fresh facts about the case emerged as investigators continue their search for Petito’s lover. Brian Laundrie’s parents claim they last saw him on Sept. 13, when he drove to a 24,000-acre Florida preserve. He was last seen on Sept. 17.
Despite over a month of scouring in the Carlton Reserve, authorities have not located him or even stated that they have discovered clues.
“We have to come up with something,” North Port police Officer Josh Taylor told NewsNationNow.com on Friday. “I believe there has been an excessive amount of attention paid to this. I’m not sure this case will ever become a cold case. We will continue to look. You know, we could spend a long, long time investigating the Carlton Reserve and adjacent territories.”
The FBI has issued a warrant for Laundrie’s arrest. He is wanted for “unauthorized access device usage” in connection with his activities in the aftermath of Petito’s death. According to the FBI, he accessed two bank accounts on Aug. 30 and Sept. 1 using a debit card and a PIN.
Credit: Upmatters
