The Oddness Surrounding Brian Laundrie's Case Explained
The FBI is still looking for Brian Laundrie, who is believed to have left his Florida home in early September, and hasn't been seen since. Prior to his disappearance, Laundrie had been on a cross country road trip with his fiancee, Gabby Petito. The two set out in July, according to CBS News, planning several stops at various national parks along their route. They started a YouTube channel to share vlogs and other videos about their four-month van trip, which was unexpectedly cut short.
Things seemed to change course on August 12 when Laundrie and Petito got into some kind of fight in Moab, Utah, and police got involved when someone else called 911, according to CNN. Reports that came in claimed that a man had struck a woman, but police say that the couple didn't want to press charges of any kind. That night, Laundrie stayed in a hotel room, and Petito slept in the van.
Then, things started getting confusing. Laundrie "flew home [to Florida] to obtain some items and empty and close the storage unit to save money as they contemplated extending the road trip," Laundrie family attorney Steven Bertolino told CNN. He flew back out to rejoin Petito on August 23, and the two were seen together on August 27. At the beginning of September, however, Laundrie showed up at his parents' home in Florida — in the van that he and Petito had been living in — without Petito. And this is where the oddness picks up.
Brian Laundrie's parents have created some confusion
Brian Laundrie arrived back in Florida on September 1, and went on a camping trip with his parents, Chris and Roberta Laundrie, on September 6, according to CNN. It wasn't until September 11 that Gabby Petito's parents reported her missing. Police showed up at Laundrie's home in hopes of talking to him about Petito, but he refused. Days later, Laundrie's family reported him missing, saying that he left home on September 14. However, in October, Laundrie's parents said that he actually left on September 13. In an interview with NewsNation, via Twitter, North Port Police Public Information Officer Josh Taylor said, "we've said from the beginning there's a lot of oddness here, a lot of things that just didn't make sense." He continued, "your son walks out there — now they're saying on a Monday — to report that [to police] on a Friday, and then be confused on what day that was. There's a lot of things that are odd there."
Petito's body was found in Wyoming and ruled a homicide on September 19, according to CNN. As of October 11, Laundrie is still considered a person of interest in the case, and has not been named a suspect in Petito's death. Authorities were able to issue a warrant for his arrest after he was found to have used an "unauthorized" debit card.
Brian Laundrie's dad assisted in the search in October
The search for Brian Laundrie has spanned across multiple states. However, Laundrie's parents seem to be the root cause of the confusion and oddness surrounding their son's potential whereabouts. Chris and Roberta Laundrie told police that their son went hiking in the Carlton Reserve, according to the New York Post. An investigation and search was launched at the reserve on September 18. "They don't believe he's in another area. They believe he is in the preserve," attorney Steven Bertolino told CNN.
According to the New York Post, Chris Laundrie went out to look for his son on September 13. The very next day, both Chris and Roberta Laundrie went to the reserve, where they found their son's silver Ford Mustang — abandoned. They went back again on September 15, and retrieved the vehicle, according to CNN. Police had obtained a warrant to search the Laundrie's home, and, on September 20, the Mustang was towed away by authorities, according to WESH.
On October 7, the Daily Mail reported that Chris Laundrie had joined the search for his son. In several photos supplied by the outlet, Chris Laundrie was seen smiling and laughing. Thus far, however, nothing relating to Brian Laundrie has been found at the reserve, according to NewsNation's interview with North Port Police that was posted on Twitter. In that same interview, Public Information Officer Josh Taylor said that authorities are split on whether or not they believe Brian Laundrie is still alive.