Brian Laundrie, 23, has been identified as a person of interest in the case and was last seen on Tuesday by family members in Florida. Dozens of officers are taking part in an intense search for him at the 24,000-acre Carlton Reserve in the state.
Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue ruled the manner of death as homicide, but is still awaiting the final results of the autopsy to determine the cause of death. The FBI is now seeking information from anyone who encountered Petito and Laundrie between Aug. 27 and 30 in the Spread Creek Dispersed Camping Area of Grand Teton, where the body was discovered.
The live coverage for this event has ended.
The body wasn’t confirmed to be Petito’s until late Tuesday afternoon. A screenshot of text messages posted on Twitter by WTSP reporter Shannon Clowe showed that when asked whether he had any new statements after the confirmation, Bertolino provided the message, notably placing quotation marks before and after the words.
The bureau announced that it had concluded its forensic investigation of the area, but needed further information. It also asked anyone who had been in the area during the time period and anyone who had seen Petito and Laundrie’s van to come forward with information.
The cause of death has not yet been determined as they coroner’s office awaits the final results of the autopsy.
FBI investigators assisting the case said Sunday that the human remains were “consistent” with the description of Petito, but did not provide 100 percent confirmation that it was her.
Jessica Schultz said in a TikTok she saw Laundrie parking his van alone near the Spread Creek camping site on August 26.
“He was very awkward and confused and it was just him, there was no Gabby,” she said.
She said she was driving behind the van along a narrow road. The van barely pulled over to allow her to pass.
She and her friends saw the van a few times near the same spot between August 26 and August 29.
Schultz said she later spotted the van parked outside a designated parking spot.
“But the van was there for several days and night and didn’t get booted [by the people who patrol the area],” she said.
“There was no indication that there was anyone at the van,” Schultz said in a second TikTok. “Usually small van people have their doors open, they’re outside…but we didn’t see any signs of actual life in the van.”
“I have directed all state agencies under my purview to continue to assist federal and local law enforcement as they continue to search,” he said in a tweet.
“We need justice for Gabby Petito.”
“I want to personally thank the press and news media for giving the Petito and Schmidt family time to grieve,” Richard Benson Stafford wrote in a letter. “We will be making a statement when Gabby is home.”
The sheriff’s office wrote in a Facebook post that though the search it conducted was “extensive” and included nearby farmlands, “no one - and nothing - of note was located.”
The individual spotted on the cam, who some have said match Laundrie’s description, has “no known ties to our area,” the office said. The OCSO Facebook post reposted a screenshot of the cam footage from another Facebook user, who said his trail camera was located in Baker, Florida, and urged residents in the area to “be on the lookout.”
NPPD Commander Joe Fussell said there are multiple law enforcement agencies working on search efforts.
Police are using K-9 units, ATVs and high-altitude drones with “advanced zoom capabilities” to search flooded and wooded areas that cannot be searched on foot or on vehicles.
Fussell added that “the terrain is very difficult to search,” as “75 percent of it is wet.”
An NPPD spokesperson said the department will not hold a press briefing at this time.
“Nothing has been found as of 1pm ET,” North Port Police Public Information Officer Josh Taylor said in an email. He added that there is no press briefing planned at this time.
“This is an FBI-led criminal investigation and North Port Police are assisting our federal partner in any way we can to bring this investigation to a close,” Taylor said.
According to News Nation Now reporter Brian Entin, the restrictions went into effect while he was in a news helicopter over the reserve.
“You don’t appreciate how large the area is until you’re in the air,” Entin said. “It’s massive and very few roads/trails.”
The Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office said they are aware of the report and “are actively checking it out.”
“There is no confirmation of this information,” the office said in a Facebook post Tuesday. “Obviously we will keep everyone in the loop if and when there is anything to report.”
Sam Bass made the initial post, showing a man caught on a trail camera.
“I’m not saying this is the guy but whoever was on my trail camera this morning in Baker, Fl strongly fits the description of Brian Laundrie, authorities have been contacted but people in the North West Florida area be on the lookout,” Bass said in a Facebook post that has been shared over 20,000 times.
The men spoke to a person believed to be Cassie Laundrie outside of the home before going inside, Fox News reported.
Cassie lives in Lakewood Ranch, about 35 miles north of her parents’ home in North Port, where law enforcement officials exercised a search warrant Monday.
When Melissa Hulls arrived on the scene, she focused on Petito because in domestic violence situations, the female usually feels more comfortable talking with another female.
“I was imploring with her to reevaluate the relationship, asking her if she was happy in the relationship with him, and basically saying this was an opportunity for her to find another path, to make a change in her life,” Hulls told Desert News.
“She had a lot of anxiety about being away from him,” she added. “I honestly thought if anything was going to change it would be after they got home to Florida.”
At the time, Hulls said officers did not believe the relationship was unsafe.
“It’s not that we didn’t think he was manipulative, but we have to worry about the safety, and not the psychology of it,” she said. “We have to go by the facts that we were faced with at the time, and not let our emotions drive the decision.”
Officers are using drones to get an aerial view of the area.
North Port Police Public Information Officer Josh Taylor shared a video of the “unforgiving terrain” as he treks through muddy paths.
After listening to the 911 call and watching the police camera footage of Petito and Laundrie in Utah, Walsh said police “sheltered” Laundrie and wrote up that he was the victim.
But he says Petito was clearly the victim in this case.
“I’ve been involved in domestic violence cases, she was scared to death in the video,” he told “Good Morning America.” “He probably killed her right after that.”
He expressed his frustration with the Laundrie family’s story and their failure to cooperate with the investigation, calling them “the dirty Laundries.”
Walsh also criticized police for allowing Laundrie 10 days to “scrub the van,” throw away evidence in his house and go “on the run.”
Walsh added that he will profile Laundrie on his show “In Pursuit” Wednesday.
“I hope we catch this coward,” he said.
The officers will return to Carlton Reserve, but this time, police say they will be moving in from the Venice side of the area.
Police also described the “dangerous” condition in the flooded swamp area.
“The Carlton Reserve is a vast and unforgiving location at times,” a North Port Police spokesperson told reporters. “It is currently [waist] deep in water in many areas. This is dangerous work for the search crews as they are wading through gator and snake-infested swamps and flooded hiking and biking trails.”
The site was spotted on last night at the Spread Creek Dispersed Campsite, although it remains unclear when the cross was created or who placed it there.
FULL STORY: Mysterious Stone Memorial Found at Gabby Petito Search Area
She was joined by campaigner Derrica Wilson, who claimed that “nobody is looking” for people, citing the case of Daniel Robinson, a missing young Black man whose father had to hire a private investigator instead of relying on local police and media coverage to help find him.
Followers of the radical movement frequently suggest major news events are so-called “false flags” that have been orchestrated by the government or the “deep state” to help push an agenda, with the latest bizarre theory that the Petito disappearance story is to make people forget about recent criticism aimed at President Joe Biden.
“Brian Laundrie? Brain = Brain. Laundrie = Laundry = Wash. BRAINWASH is what his name means. Definitely an operation,” one Telegram user wrote.
FULL STORY: Gabby Petito Accused of Being Actor by QAnon Conspiracy Followers
Now, people are wondering if his parents could also possibly face charges like obstruction of justice, although thus far authorities have given no indication they committed any crime.
If his parents were being intentionally untruthful or withholding pertinent evidence in regards to what they know about Brian’s current whereabouts or Petito’s disappearance, they could have committed crimes, including obstruction of justice.
FULL STORY: Could Brian Laundrie’s Parents Be Charged With Obstruction of Justice in Gabby Petito Case?
Could Brian Laundrie’s Parents Be Charged With Obstruction of Justice in Gabby Petito Case?
Investigators spent yesterday searching the house thoroughly and loading cardboard boxes full of evidence into a van.
Officers also towed away a silver Ford Mustang.
What appears to be a makeshift memorial was found in the Spread Creek Dispersed Camping Area in Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming, after investigators left the scene. It is not known at this time who placed it there.
Erik Hall, director of SLU’s Forensic Science Program, told Fox2Now that authorities will be looking at DNA and performing toxicology reports to work out the cause of death.
“The body is the best piece of evidence they have. You can potentially pull DNA off of the body, is there clothing there, could the clothing be looked at for trace amounts of DNA?
“They still may be combing through the area looking for evidence sort of tracing the steps of where they think the body may have come into the area,” he said.
However, when asked why he canceled his Tuesday morning press conference, Laundrie’s attorney, Steven Bertolino, said that it was “Just not in my clients’ best interest,” according to WTSP reporter Shannon Clowe.
Earlier on Monday, Clowe noted that Bertolino had told her, “Don’t expect any bombshells” at the now-cancelled press conference.
While stationed in front of the Laundrie’s home, Clowe noted earlier that the FBI had concluded their investigation of the house.
Brent Blue, the coroner of Grand Teton County, Wyoming said that the autopsy of the remains would be completed by Tuesday, Fox News reported. The remains—recovered from the Moran Vista dispersed camping area of Moose, Wyoming—are believed to belong to Petito.
No other information about the remains or their physical state has been released.
In one TikTok video, a person screaming on a megaphone says that he and his group will camp outside of the family’s home “everyday.” The voice emerged in a video posted by a TikTok user named @nerdyaddict.
The video shows protesters in front of the family’s home screaming “Where’s Gabby?” while others hold protest signs or use their phones to record the family. The video has been viewed over 2.6 million times.
On Monday, @nerdyaddict posted seven videos. Most were recorded in front of the family’s home. Others replayed media broadcasts about Gabby Petito.
The hashtags #brianlaundrie #gabbypetito and #gabbypetitoupdate all lead to numerous TikTok videos covering the ongoing news story.
Two days ago, a video from another TikTok user, Miranda Baker, went viral after she claimed that she picked up Brian Laundrie as a hitchhiker near where Petito went missing. Her video has since been viewed over 15.7 million times.
Three of the items are from a third-party apparel seller calling itself SHANZEI. Its black cotton t-shirts retail for $12.98 and its black cotton hoodie retails for $29.98. The shirts came online Monday. One t-shirt is for men, and the other is for women.
The fourth item is a book entitled, The Missing Lady Gabby Petito: Fact About Her Life You Must Know With Different Perspectives. The book is free on Kindle or $13.99 for paperback. It went on sale on Friday.
The book seems to be written by a non-English speaker. Its preview text reads:
“Petito is accepted to have been in the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, police said. She was traveling with her beau, Brian Laundrie, in her white attire 2012 Ford Transit van with a Florida tag on it, police said in a Wednesday news discharge.”
The book is written by an author named Joseph Joe. He also wrote a book entitled, How To Be Debt Free In Network Marketing: Key To Your Financial Success Is To Give Your Business Whatever It Takes And Master The Habits.
Bertolino has received more than 30 1-star reviews on Google since revealing himself as Brian Laundrie’s lawyer.
An ex-detective and Petito’s family members have both criticized local police for bungling the investigation into Petito’s initial disappearance and apparent death.
Gabby Petito’s father, Joseph, has also called Brian Laundrie’s parents “complicit” in his daughter’s death for not doing more to force their son to cooperate with police investigators.
One commenter, rubyruerubes, wrote, “If something happened just come forward. The longer you wait the worst your situation becomes.”
Another commenter, yourbrowsmytweezers, wrote, “Why would you return home without telling anyone what or where you ’lost’ your fiancé?!? If you were in Innocent, you would rush right home to ask for help .. not just show up and act like nothing happened”.
Yet another commenter, thallie13, wrote, “Laundrie, it seems the FBI are looking for you. It was nice of your parents to FINALLY speak to Police today but it seems they had already snuck you out of the house, whereabouts unknown. When they find you, your parents also deserve to each be charged as an accessory.”
One more, kaneladarling, wrote, “Accidents happen we all get that.. but the family and we the people need to know if gabby is OK and where she’s at or if she needs help. Please. It will be alot easier to just tell the truth. When you tell the truth you’ll never need to cover up any lies. Please just be open with just the pure truth ❤️ please💜”
One postcard from Garden of the Gods—a 1,300-acre park of sandstone formations in Colorado Springs, Colorado—mentions that a squirrel stole food from her during a mid-hike rest.
“Oh my Gosh! Me and Uncle Brian were sitting on a rock eating a snack after our long walk, and the fattest squirrel I’ve ever seen!!! Came right on my lap!! And with its tiny hands stole a piece of the granola bar I was eating!! Can you believe it! He must steal everyone’s food. Oh man! That’s wild!” Petito wrote.
She signs the card “Aunt Gabby.”
Another postcard, sent from Arches National Park in Utah, mentions that the park’s most popular rock formations are called “hoodoos.”
Another card, from Red Canyon in California’s Dixie National Forest, mentioned Petito and Brian Laundrie’s star-gazing.
“The sky here is so open, there’s more stars than I’ve ever seen!! Scorpio is so big and bright every night! It’s always the first one me and uncle Brian spot!”
Yet another postcard, sent from Utah, simply says, “Hey boys. Really hope that you are so excited for school!!! We miss you so much!”
Most of the reviews began three days ago, following Friday’s announcement that Laundrie had vanished and his family was speaking to investigators in detail for the first time.
A review left by Bill Bizzo said, “Individuals like this bertolino make lawyers look like slime. Seems he’d rather hurt the Petito’s than help them find their poor daughter. HE IS DISGUSTING!”
Another from Laura Richardson read, “Really? A man leaves with his partner; comes back in partners vehicle without partner; hires YOU and you tell em to hide while giving the family of his partner the finger.. looks like Grand theft to me… arrest him!”
One user, David N, wrote, “He’s a slimeball. Client confidentiality is important but over someone’s life? Poor morals. Hope he doesnt have children.”
Others reviews were critical of Bertolino’s professionalism, quality, responsiveness and value. Some users simply left one star with no explanation.
There are no Google reviews of Bertolino prior to him representing Laundrie. However, a Womply review from May 2019 rates him as 5-stars with no comment.
Bertolino has been practicing law in Long Island since 1994 after earning his Juris Doctor from Hofstra Law, according to his website. He practices areas of law including real estate law, business law, civil and commercial litigation, personal injury law and criminal cases.
The lawyer is expected to hold a press conference at 1 p.m. in Long Island on Tuesday to address his client’s whereabouts and/or the FBI search, according to Tampa Bay reporter Shannon Clowe.
Harvey Morse, a Florida-based private investigator, told Insider that it would be possible for Laundrie to have fled the country and said “it would be easy” for him to evade detection by wearing a face mask.
He added that police are likely considering two possible scenarios during the search. The first is that Laundrie is hiding and the second is that he will attempt suicide.
Morse said the second possibility has an “above average” chance because of the possible charges Laundrie will face in Florida where there are “severe legal consequences” such as the death penalty. The large media coverage is also indicative of this scenario, according to Morse.
Similar to Morse, social media users have also speculated that Laundrie may have fled to a non-extraditable country, like Mexico, to avoid capture.
Public Information Officer Josh Taylor released a statement saying that law enforcement “exhausted all avenues in searching of the grounds there” and that agencies continued searching for Laundrie but did not specify where the search was taking place or if the department was involved in the investigations.
In response, social media users are directing their fury at police as the only person of interest in Gabby Petito’s case remains missing.
“A call-in witness described a man SLAPPING a woman. When @moabpolice respond and see #GABBYPETITO in distress after having been locked out of her own car, they blame her OCD for Brians behavior, and listed him as victim in their report #BrianLaundrieHiding #justiceforgabby,” Twitter user @aking4democracy posted.
Another Twitter user, Erie Siobhan tweeted, “Why did the Moab police list Brian Laundrie as the victim in the 8/12 incident? IMO they are partially to blame for Gabby’s death. They failed her.”
Facebook user Craig Cobb commented on a HuffPost article about the Florida search being suspending and said, “1.) Police should’ve brought him in before he “disappeared.” Typical LEO incompetence… 2.) It should be obvious to anyone with even half a working brain that his rich parents created a diversion and snuck him out of the country. 3.) They should arrest his whole goddamned family and interrogate them day and night until somebody cracks and starts singing like a canary…”
The FBI announced that they concluded a search at the Laundrie residence in North Port but did not provide further details citing an ongoing investigation.
Brian Entin, a correspondent for NewsNation Now, tweeted around 5:52 p.m. that an officer went to the door with paperwork but did not provide more detail.
Around 6:18 p.m., police and FBI exited the home with what appeared to be coolers and food boxes from lunch. Entin speculated that it appeared all law enforcement had left from inside the Laundrie home.
Fox News also shared live footage of apparent officers outside the Lakewood Ranch home of Brian Laundrie’s sister, Cassie Laundrie after FBI agents visited her parents’ home.
“We have not been able to confirm that Brian Laundrie was spotted in Mobile,” Brian Entin, a correspondent for NewsNation Now, tweeted.
Police were following up on a tip that someone spotted an individual resembling Laundrie at a Walmart in Tillmans Corner, Alabama. A police spokesperson said officers sent the information to the FBI who “is now handling the case to verify” if the person spotted was Laundrie.
A body was also found near the Walmart but James Barber, the Mobile mayor’s chief of staff, confirmed it is not Laundrie, according to local station WPMI-TV.
Prior to the discovery of what is likely Gabby Petito’s remains, her father appeared on Dr. Phil and called Brian’s parents, Chris and Roberta Laundrie, complicit in what happened to her because of their son’s actions.
“That is not how you raise a child. You raise your children to stand up and own up to your mistakes,” Joseph said. “As a man that is what I do. From father to father he should be doing that too. And I’m sorry, I understand protecting your kid and all that other stuff but in my opinion, you’re a coward.”
READ MORE: Could Brian Laundrie’s parents be charged with obstruction of justice in Gabby Petito case?
There have been no known sightings of Petito since August 27.
According to the warrant, Petito sent multiple text messages and “had many talks” with her mother, Nichole Schmidt.
“During these conversations, there appeared to be more and more tension between her and Laundrie,” the warrant said.
The warrant also describes an “odd text” Schmidt received from her daughter’s phone on August 27 in which Petito referred to her grandfather as Stan, a name she has never called him.
Schmidt “was concerned something was wrong with her daughter.” This was the last communication anyone had with Petito, the warrant said. Her cellphone was no longer operational and she stopped posting on social media after that.
Her family said “this was not normal behavior” and “they grew more worried about her.”
According to the warrant, the North Port Police Department intends to search Laundrie’s computer and external hard drives.
The warrant gives police the authority to search emails, text messages, photos, videos, internet browsing history and other computer files and digital documents. It also gives police access to passwords, encryptions and data security devices.
The computer and “external storage device(s)” are in police custody.
Officers are following up on a tip reported a few days ago that someone who resembled Laundrie was spotted at a Walmart in Tilman’s Corner, Alabama.
A police spokesperson said officers sent the information to the FBI who “is now handling the case to verify” if the person spotted was Laundrie.
Law enforcement officials left the Laundrie home to move their vehicles from the driveway to the road moments before two trucks arrived.
A truck then towed Brian Laundrie’s silver Mustang away. This is the car he drove to Carlton Reserve last week. North Port police told reporters that Laundrie’s parents picked up the car and drove it back to their home.
The truck was followed by an FBI agent in a black Jeep.
The coroner has not yet provided any possible causes of death or confirmation of identity for the remains since they were discovered. The FBI said that the body matched Petito’s description and offered condolences to her family in a tweet Sunday.
In the call obtained by Fox News, the witness said the van drove down Main Street after “the gentleman was slapping the girl.”
“They ran up and down the sidewalk, he preceded to hit her, hopped in the car and they drove off,” the caller said.
There are fears that Laundrie may change his appearance to avoid being found by police.
Laundrie remains a person of interest in the case of Gabby Petito’s disappearance.
Police have not named him a suspect but they are searching for Laundrie because he is currently a missing person.
“I’m a protective father, if my daughter cries, I’m gonna fix the problem,” Joseph Petito said. “That’s not something she’s going to bring up to me because I’m going to get involved real quick.”
He said it was hard to watch the police body camera footage of Gabby talking with police in Utah after an “altercation” with Laundrie because he “can’t bring himself to see my daughter cry.”
Petito said Gabby never mentioned that incident to him.
In the same video, Gabby said she “has OCD,” but her father said she was never diagnosed.
“She was clean, she likes things in their place,” he said. “[The van] is a confined space. Making sure things are put away…doesn’t seem OCD to me.”
He added that she “doesn’t have mental instability,” and the incident with police “sounds like [Gabby and Laundrie] were just having an argument.”
This interview was recorded before a body matching Gabby’s description was found in Wyoming over the weekend.
Brent Shavnore, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran turned videographer, noticed the movement on a video first posted to YouTube by Jenn and Kyle Bethune.
The video was recorded at Spread Creek Dispersed Camping land in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, on August 27, three days after the 22-year-old’s last official sighting.
“I was watching the YouTube Video released by Red White and Bethune looking for movement in the van. The van is easy to shake if someone is inside and moves it,” Shavnore told Newsweek.
READ MORE: “Video Shows Gabby Petito’s Van Door Closing 3 Days After Last Sighting”
The Laundries were taken out of the house to sit inside a van parked on the driveway for about 10 minutes, reporters said.
The parents were brought back into their home moments ago.
WFLA reports that Brian Laundrie’s dad went out to a car on his driveway to gather documents about 20 minutes before police cars swarmed his home. It is unclear from which car he grabbed documents.
It is unclear at this time if the Laundrie’s remain in an FBI vehicle outside of their home or if they have reentered the home. Reporters on the scene said they saw the Laundries go back into their home.
There is no word from officials if the Laundries will be taken in for police questioning.
“The FBI is executing a court-authorized search warrant today at the Laundrie residence in North Port, FL relevant to the Gabrielle “Gabby” Petito investigation,” the FBI said.
They said the investigation is “active and ongoing.”
The FBI announced a “search warrant” twice before entering and removing Chris and Roberta Laundrie, Brian’s parents, from their home. They were placed in a van on the lawn, Fox News reported.
Police arrived minutes earlier to block off the area and clear the streets, yelling at people “you’re in a crime scene.”
According to the texts, Petito and Brian Laundrie were in Arches National Park in Utah on August 10.
Cassie also shared the postcards Petito sent to her children from different stops on her trip with Brian.
The video showed a white van, similar to Petito’s, in a remote area of the Bridger-Teton National Forest, near the Spread Creek Dispersed campground.
Now the family travel vloggers behind the dashcam footage, Jenn and Kyle Bethune known on YouTube as “Red White & Bethune,” have since said that they had spoken with Petito’s mother, Nichole Schmidt, on FaceTime yesterday.
She said Schmidt thanked her for sharing and speaking up about the footage.
“We had a very good cry together from one mom to another,” Bethune told Insider. She added that she contacted the FBI in the early hours of yesterday.
Investigators had not verified that the van was indeed Peitito’s by Sunday lunchtime, officials told Newsweek at the time.
The clip (below) has since been viewed nearly 1.5 million times online.
A body, believed to be Gabby Petito, was discovered on Sunday near the Spread Creek Dispersed campground.
The search has focused on the 24,000-acre site since Laundrie’s family reported him missing on Friday.
Newsweek has contacted North Port Police Department, which leads the investigation, for comment.
August 12: Police called to ‘altercation’ in Utah (watch the video here)
August 25: Last known sighting of Gabby Petito
August 30: Petito’s last communication with family
September 1: Laundrie returns to North Port without Petito
September 11: Petito’s family reports her missing
September 15: Brian Laundrie named as person of interest
September 16: Press conference with Petito’s father
September 17: Laundrie’s parents report him missing
September 19: Body believed to be Petito is found in Wyoming
The 24,000-acre reserve remains an active scene for investigators hoping to speak to Laundrie about the disappearance, and suspected death, of his fiancée.
He remains a “person of interest” in the case.
North Port Police officers and FBI agents are continuing to carry out a search of the vast Carlton Reserve for Laundrie.
FULL STORY: Brian Laundrie’s Family ‘Prays for Gabby’ and Petitos After Body Found—Lawyer
Lara Yeretsian told Fox News she believes it is only a matter of time before Laundrie is questioned by police after he returned home to North Port, Florida, earlier this month without Petito and is refusing to talk to authorities.
FULL STORY: Lawyer ‘Wouldn’t Be Surprised’ If Brian Laundrie Is Arrested Soon
Petito’s family are aware of the clip and have said they “believe this is the van for multiple reasons.”
Police are yet to verify whether or not the van shown is the white Ford Transit used by the couple, investigators confirmed to Newsweek.
FULL STORY: Video Could Show Van During Mystery Period
But after failing to return home, the family went out to look for him and found his vehicle near the Carlton Reserve - where police are currently searching for him. The car had a note from the North Port Police Department saying that it needed to be removed.
It was previously thought that Laundrie, who is refusing to speak to investigators about Petito’s disappearance, had been staying at his parents’ home in North Port, Florida, for several days.
FULL STORY: Brian Laundrie’s Family Found Police Note on His Car Day After Disappearance
“Why would you try to get consent from the guy, and now get a search warrant?” Pat Diaz, a former Miami-Dade homicide detective, told Fox News. “You can get a search warrant for everything in that house, including his laptop.”
He said the examination of Laundrie’s electronic items on the day his girlfriend went missing could have uncovered vital clues about her disappearance. Diaz’s criticism comes after Laundrie refused to co-operate with officers.
“Full forensic identification has not been completed to confirm 100% that we found Gabby, but her family has been notified,” FBI Special Agent Charles Jones told reporters yesterday. “This is an incredibly difficult time for (Petito’s) family and friends.”
Follow Newsweek’s liveblog throughout Monday for all the latest on the case.
