New development in the case of the killed Gabby Petito: In search of her missing friend Brian Laundrie, investigators have made a find that does not suggest anything good.
Investigators have allegedly found human remains while searching for the friend of the killed Gabby Petito. In addition, objects belonging to the 23-year-old were discovered, said FBI investigator Michael McPherson on Wednesday afternoon (local time). These things were found on the Carlton Reservation in the US state of Florida in an area that was until recently under water.
The investigations at the site should take days, said FBI investigator Michael McPherson. “I know you have a lot of questions, but we don’t have all the answers yet,” he added to the journalists present.
Laundrie’s parents sent word through their lawyer that they had joined the police in the area to find their son that morning. “After a quick search near a path Brian used frequently, some items were found by Brian.” The man lived in the nearby town of North Port in southwest Florida.
The Petito case has been keeping the US in suspense for weeks and is also generating international media interest. The 22-year-old disappeared while traveling across the United States with her fiancé. Her body was finally discovered after a feverish search in mid-September in Grand Teton National Park in the state of Wyoming in the western United States. She was strangled, according to forensic medicine.
Wanted for credit card fraud
Laundrie had initially returned alone from the trip to Florida in early September, where he lived with Petito. When Petito’s parents reported their daughter missing, he initially refused to testify and eventually disappeared. He was subsequently wanted by an arrest warrant – not directly for Petito’s death, but for credit card fraud after the death of his fiancée.
The case also caused so much attention because the couple shared their experiences during the adventure originally planned for four months on the online services Instagram and Youtube. The photos showed a smiling couple and impressive landscapes.
However, there were apparently arguments between Petito and Laundrie during the trip. Police were called in an incident in Utah state in August. Petito can be seen crying from a police officer’s body camera, saying she hit her fiancé and he grabbed her.
Criticism of reporting
The interest in the case took on bizarre traits: Countless Internet users took part in the search for Petito in the online networks, and a bounty hunter known from a reality TV show joined the search for her fiancé.
Critics have questioned whether the case is getting so much attention because Petito is white – pointing out that the disappearance of young African-Americans or Latinos is much less covered.
The coroner who autopsied Petito’s body recently criticized a “media circus”. Unfortunately, Petito is just one of many domestic violence victims, he said. Much less is reported about these cases, and that is “regrettable”.
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