TRUE CRIMEGabby Petito's Parents Claim Brian Laundrie's Family Knew Where Her Dead Body Was
May 3 2022, Published 12:20 p.m. ET
Several months have passed since 22-year-old Gabby Petitio was killed by fiancé Brian Laundrie, but new details about the tragedy are just now coming to light.
In an amended lawsuit filed by her parents, Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt, the couple allege that Laundrie's parents, Christopher and Roberta Laundrie, knew where their future daughter-in-law's dead body was hidden when they embarked on a trip with their son as authorities were in the midst of their missing persons investigation.
The Petito family is asking for an additional $30,000 from the Laundries, stating they suffered "mental anguish" due to their deceitful actions.
They first filed the lawsuit in March, claiming that Laundrie's parents were helping their son flee the country and cover up Gabby's murder, in addition to refusing to give any information they may have had on the situation.
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"Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie knew of the mental suffering and anguish of Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt, and knew that they could alleviate, at least in part, such mental suffering and anguish by disclosing what they knew about the well-being and the location of the remains of Gabrielle Petito, yet they repeatedly refused to do so," stated the lawsuit.
After the filing, the Laundrie family tried to have the suit dismissed, with their attorney calling it "frivolous" since the duo have a "general constitutional right not to speak on any topic and a more specific constitutional right not to speak in the face of a criminal investigation."
When Petito went missing, the pair released a statement expressing their "hope" that she would be reunited with her family, making it seem as though they didn't know what had happened to her.
Petito's body was discovered in Wyoming on September 19, and an autopsy revealed she died from strangulation. For the next month, her fiancé was unable to be located, but on October 20, his body was found in a Florida park.
Authorities then found his notebook in which he confessed to killing Petito, and an autopsy revealed that he died due to a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
