Brian Laundrie’s parents KNEW gun was gone when he fled but didn’t tell public he was armed due to ‘frenzied atmosphere’
BRIAN Laundrie's parents knew a gun was missing from their home when their fugitive son fled to a Florida nature park amid a probe into the disappearance of his slain fiance Gabby Petito, his family's lawyer said.
Laundrie's parents, Chris and Roberta, reportedly discovered a handgun was missing from their collection when they voluntarily surrendered all of their firearms to police on Sept. 17 - the same day they reported him missing, attorney Steve Bertolino said.
The weapon was reportedly missing from its case. Officers from the FBI and North Port Police Department were inside the home when the discovery was made, Bertolino said.
When pressed as to why information about the missing gun wasn't disclosed publicly, Berolino told The Sun both he and law enforcement agreed it was "best for that information to not be public."
"Imagine, with the frenzied atmosphere at the time, if the public thought Brian had a gun," he said.
"I cannot speak to why [police] did not reveal the info but we spoke about it at the time and I believe they felt as I did."
Brian had left home on September 13, telling his parents he was going hiking in the nearby Carlton Reserve but failed to return home.
Just over five weeks later, the 23-year-old's skeletal remains were found in a marshy patch of land inside Myakkahatchee Creek Park on October 20.
Officials revealed earlier this week that Brian died from a single self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head. The ruling came following a weeks-long investigation after an initial autopsy came back inconclusive due to the advanced state of decomposition his remains were found in.
It's currently unclear whether Laundrie took his parents' missing gun, or whether it was the one he used to kill himself.
Bertolino said he "does not know" if the weapon was recovered by police "near Brian's remains or among his possessions. "
The FBI has been contacted for comment on Bertolino's remarks.
Laundrie was never charged or publicly named as a suspect in relation to Petito's death, however, he was the sole person of interest in the case.
A warrant was issued for arrest days after his disappearance for alleged bank fraud after he reportedly racked up charges of more than $1000 on a bank card belonging to Petito in the days after she's believed to have been killed.
The remains of Petito, 22, were found in a campsite near Wyoming's Grand Teton Nation Park on September 19.
An autopsy found that she had been strangled to death by a "human force" between three and four weeks earlier.
Most read in The Sun
Three experts exclusively told The Sun earlier this week that Laundrie's suicide was a sign that he was likely responsible for Gabby's death.
Former veteran NYPD homicide detective Tom Joyce said the corner's suicide ruling confirms "What we knew already about the case."
"I think we all know he was responsible," Joyce speculated. "He understood the gravity and low likelihood of getting away with it. He contemplated his options and felt this was the easiest way out.
"I don't consider it an absolute 'confession', though, which we should all wish he did before he took his life."
Ex-federal prosecutor Neama Rahmani agreed with Joyce, adding: "All the evidence tells the same story: that Laundrie killed himself after killing Petito.
"The only question is whether Laundrie left a suicide note and whether it is salvageable after being underwater, and whether the gun will ever be found."
Forensic pathologist Dr. Cyril Wecht, the former president of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, also believes Laundrie's suicide is an admission of guilt over Petito's murder.
He told The Sun: "I believe he killed her out there [in Wyoming], and he came to realize there was no way out.
"And rather than talk about it," he continued, "he took his own life.
"It makes all the sense in the world. That's it for the case - done and dusted."
CASE CLOSED?
A number of questions do still remain in the case, even after Brian's cause of death was finally confirmed.
Chief among them is precisely what happened between Gabby and Brian on their ill-fated road trip touring the US national parks, and if Brian did indeed kill her.
They had been around two months into their planned four-month cross-country road trip touring the US’ national parks before Gabby vanished sometime around August 27.
Brian quietly returned home to Florida alone on September 1, failing to alert police or Gabby’s family that she was missing.
Gabby was eventually reported missing by her mother in New York on September 11. That came after 10 days of allegedly being stonewalled by Brian and his parents about where her daughter was.
Brian then vanished himself on September 13, six days before Gabby's body was found.
Some of the answers may lie in a notebook and backpack found next to Brian's remains last month.
Authorities have not released any information about what the book or bag contained. It's also unclear whether they've located the firearm Laundrie used to kill himself.
Rahmani, like Wecht, suggested that the outcome of Brian's autopsy marked the end of law enforcement's months-long investigation into Gabby's death.
"This is the end of the criminal investigation because all signs point to Laundrie and law enforcement can’t prosecute a deceased person," he said.
"The Petito family will never receive the criminal justice that Gabby deserved, but hopefully they will take comfort in the fact that her likely murderer is no longer alive.”
READ MORE SUN STORIES
Joyce, meanwhile, said that while Gabby's murder case will be closed, investigators still have a few "loose ends" to follow up on, such as gleaning clues from Laundrie's notebook.
"Gabby's murder will be closed with what's known as an exceptional clearance, or where the suspect and culprit is known but cannot be arrested - in this case, because he's dead."
Brian Laundrie timeline
Brian Laundrie has not been seen since the morning of September 13. Here is a timeline of Laundrie's latest whereabouts:
- July 2021: Brian Laundrie and his fiancé Gabby Petito leave for a grip across the country. The couple visit numerous national parks across the way.
- August 12: Police in Utah respond to an incident involving the couple. The bodycam footage is not released for another month but it shows a visibly upset Gabby talking to police after reports of a domestic violence incident outside a grocery store.
- August 24: Gabby is seen leaving a hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah, with Laundrie.
- September 1: Laundrie returns to his home in North Port, Florida without Gabby.
- September 6: Laundrie joins his family on a camping trip about 75 miles from their home in North Port.
- September 11: Gabby's family reports her missing.
- September 13: Laundrie leaves home to go hiking in Carlton Reserve, Florida. His family had initially said he departed on September 14, but revised their timeline weeks later.
- September 15: Laundrie is named a person of interest in the case of Gabby.
- September 16: Bodycam footage is released regarding the incident between Gabby and Laundrie.
- September 19: The FBI announces a body found at a Wyoming national park is believed to be that of Gabby's.
- September 23: The FBI issued a warrant for Laundrie's arrest claiming he "used unauthorized debit cards after Gabby Petito's death."
- September 26: A funeral is held for Gabby in New York.
- September 27: Dog the Bounty Hunter announces he will lend a hand and help search for Laundrie.
- September 28: Gabby's family held an emotional press conference as the search for Laundrie continued.
- October 5: Laundrie's sister, Cassie, appeared on Good Morning America and urged her brother to come forward.
- October 7: Laundrie's father, Chris Laundrie, assisted law enforcement in the search to find his son.
- October 12: Gabby's autopsy results were made public. Teton County Coroner Dr Brent Blue confirmed Gabby died by strangulation.
- October 20: Laundrie's personal items were found near the Myakkahatchee Creek Park trail in Florida. The medical examiner was called to the scene to investigate.
- October 21: Reports stated the human remains found in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park were bones.
- October 21: The FBI confirmed the remains found have been identified as Laundrie's.
We pay for your stories!
Do you have a story for The US Sun team?
Email us at [email protected] or call 212 416 4552.
Like us on Facebook at and follow us from our main Twitter account at