Gabby Petito's Father, Brian Laundrie's Family Pay Tribute To Influencer After FBI Announces Human Remains Found In Wyoming Likely To Be Hers
After the FBI announced that the body found in Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming is likely to be 22-year-old influencer Gabby Petito, tributes have been posted by her father and Brian Laundrie's family.
Petito's father, Joseph Petito, shared a photo of his daughter posing in front of angel wings on Twitter. "#GABBYPETITO she touched the world," he wrote with a broken heart emoji.
The Petitio family's attorney, Richard Benson Stafford, released a statement asking that the family be given the space to grieve.
"I would also like to personally thank the FBI, the Suffolk County Police Department, the North Port Police Department and especially the Grand Teton Search and Rescue Team," the attorney wrote. "Your tireless work and determination helped to bring Gabby home to her parents. The family and I will forever be grateful."
Meanwhile, the family of Laundrie — who was previously named a person of interest in the 22-year-old's disappearance — also spoke out. "The news about Gabby Petito is heartbreaking," the Laundrie family's attorney said in a statement, according to NewsNationNow reporter Brain Entin. "The Laundrie family prays for Gabby and her family."
"We are saddened and heartbroken to learn that Gabby has been found deceased. Our focus from the start, along with the FBI, and national partners, has been to bring her home. We will continue to work with the FBI in the search for more answers," North Port Police said in a statement.
An autopsy is scheduled for Tuesday, September 21, Teton County, Wyoming, Coroner Dr. Brent Blue told CNN. The Coroner told the outlet that the identity of the body would be confirmed using photographs, personal identification or DNA.
"She [Petito] maintained regular contact with her family members during her travels, however, that communication abruptly stopped around the end of August," North Port Police Chief Todd Garrison, said in a statement on Thursday, September 16.
In August, the couple had an encounter with police after they were reportedly spotted arguing outside a food cooperative called Moonflower in Utah. Petito told police that they had been arguing that morning and she was "frustrated" with her 23-year-old boyfriend. Laundrie locked the van and and suggested they go for a walk to calm down.
Laundrie was said to have been picked up hitchhiking alone on August 29 at Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. According to TikToker Miranda Baker, he "freaked out" when she said they were going to Jackson Hole and said he would get a ride from someone else.
On September 18, it was reported that Laundrie's whereabouts were "currently unknown."
Police said in a statement on Friday, September 17, that Laundrie's family had not seen him since Tuesday, September 14. "For six days, the North Port Police Department and the FBI have been pleading with the family to contact investigators regarding Brian's fiancée Gabby Petito. Friday is the first time they have spoken with investigators in detail," the statement read. "We are not currently working a crime investigation. We are now working a multiple missing person investigations."
