Fiancé of Celebgram Gabby Petito Found Dead in Florida Park, FBI Yet to Disclose Cause of Death

Kapanlagi.com - The mystery case of the disappearance of celebgram, influencer, and travel blogger from the United States, Gabby Petito, along with her fiancé, continues. On Thursday (10/21/2021) local time, the FBI identified the human remains found in the Florida wilderness as belonging to Brian Laundrie, the person of interest in the death of his fiancé, Gabby Petito, during their cross-country trip some time ago.

The body, backpack, and notebook believed to belong to Laundrie were found on Wednesday (10/20/2021) in the wild forest park in Florida, where the area was previously submerged in water during the search. The FBI office in Denver stated in their press release that dental records comparison confirmed that the body they found was Laundrie's.

Steve Bertolino, the attorney for Laundrie's parents, also confirmed in a separate statement that they received news that the body belongs to their son. "We have no further comments at this time and we ask that you respect the Laundrie family's privacy," the statement said.

1. Body Found Submerged in Water

© instagram.com/gabspetito

According to kimt.com, the FBI statement did not mention the cause of Laundrie's death. It is also unknown how long the body has been submerged in water.

The discovery of Laundrie's body ends a massive search involving multiple parties, including federal and state law enforcement agencies, which began shortly after the man went missing last week on September 14, 2021.

For your information, two weeks before being found deceased, Laundrie was said to have returned alone to his parents' home in North Port without Gabby Petito after his fiancée was reported missing. However, they were known to be together in the Grand Teton National Park area in Wyoming, around the end of August. Prior to disappearing, Laundrie refused to speak about the whereabouts of his fiancée.

2. Investigation Not Yet Over

The discovery of Laundrie's body is not the end of the investigation into Petito's murder. However, so far, only Laundrie has been identified by law enforcement as a person of interest in the case.

Petito's family reported the disappearance of the influencer on September 11, 2021, sparking media attention worldwide. In Laundrie's case, most of the search efforts focused on the dense forest area of Carlton Reserve near Laundrie's home. This area is a thick forest and swamp region that is home to alligators, wild dogs, wild cats, snakes, and many other creatures.

Laundrie and Petito first met as teenagers in Long Island, New York. Recently, they moved to the Gulf Coast of Florida to live with Laundrie's parents.

This couple first gained attention on social media when they embarked on a trip in a Ford Transit van, which was captured in a video showcasing happy moments that may have concealed deeper issues. After Petito went missing, the case received significant attention from true crime enthusiasts on social media.

3. A Brief Overview of the Chronology of the Case

Before the FBI found Laundrie, Petito's body was found a month earlier (September 19, 2021) on the edge of Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, which the couple had previously visited. The coroner concluded that she died from strangulation and her body was at the crime scene for three or four weeks.

On August 12, 2021, the couple was involved in a physical altercation mediated by the police in Moab, Utah, which did not result in the filing of domestic violence charges. Currently, the police department there is conducting an internal review to determine if they followed applicable policies.

Laundrie returned home alone on September 1, 2021, driving the van the couple had been traveling in. However, the van was later seized by authorities. Laundrie was also reported missing after telling his parents that he would go hiking in Carlton Reserve.

During the search, authorities received many reports of Laundrie's whereabouts from Wyoming to the Appalachian Trail. However, none of them turned out to be true.

4. Threatened Punishment

Laundrie's body was found on Wednesday during a concentrated search in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park area, where the Ford Mustang he was driving into the wilderness was found. The park is adjacent to Carlton Reserve, where they are about 56 kilometers south of Sarasota, Florida.

Laundrie himself was charged with federal charges in Wyoming regarding unauthorized use of a debit card, accusing Laundrie of using a Capital One Bank card and someone's personal identification number to make withdrawals or bills totaling more than $1,000 (about Rp 14 million).

The charges allow Laundrie to be arrested by authorities if he is still alive when found. Stay tuned on KapanLagi.com, KLovers, so you don't miss the latest updates on what's hot.

(kim/rsp)