Gabby Petito’s parents claim the mother and father of their daughter’s boyfriend knew of her death two weeks before she was reported missing.
Gabby Petito’s disappearance sparked major media interest and a search for her whereabouts, but an amended filing to a lawsuit in Florida says Brian Laundrie’s parents and Wyoming attorney Steven Bertolino knew the truth of her disappearance but stirred up false hope of recovering her alive.
Gabby Petito, a young travel blogger, was on a long road trip with Laundrie, her boyfriend, in 2021, when she went missing, last seen on August 24. Her parents reported her missing on September 11 and the 22-year-old’s remains were found in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming on September 19.
A statement released by the Laundries on September 14, 2021, said: “It is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family.”
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That was three days after Gabby was reported missing. In their amendment, her parents called the Laundries’ alleged actions “outrageous.”
“For the Laundries and Steven Bertolino to express their ‘hope’ that Gabrielle Petito was located and reunited with her family, at a time when they knew she had been murdered by Brian Laundrie was beyond outrageous,” the amendment reads.
Brian Laundrie was found dead in a nature reserve close to his parents’ home. Written statements found close to his body claimed responsibility for Gabby Petito’s death.
Key to the suit is the allegation that Christopher and Roberta Laundrie knew about what happened because they had received a phone call from their son on August 29, 2021. In it, the Petito family alleges, a “frantic” Brian Laundrie told them he “needed a lawyer.”
They accuse the couple of informing Bertolino that Gabby had “gone” and their son would be requiring his services. The amendment was added to the original suit filed last year. The Laundrie family denies the claims.
It is not clear how the Petito family knew about the alleged phone call, but an attorney for the couple, Pat Reilly, told NBC that the information came from depositions given by the Laundries in October.
“It was an emotional, gut-wrenching and eye-opening day for Joe and Nichole,” Reilly said to the news outlet. “They learned exactly what the Laundries and Bertolino knew while Joe and Nichole and the rest of the family were searching for any information on Gabby but failed to disclose. The level of insensitivity of Mr. Bertolino is shocking but not unexpected.”
A statement from Bertolino said a comment on the allegations was not yet available but “We will be filing our answers in the next few days.”
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Newsweek reached out to Bertolino for comment.
It is not the first case brought against the Laundries by the Petito family. In November last year, a settlement was reached for $3 million, part of a wrongful death suit that is separate to the ongoing one. The family said any proceeds received from the first suit will go to the Gabby Petito Foundation.
Another lawsuit is being pursued by the Petito family against Moab Police in Utah. It claims the department was negligent and ill-equipped to deal with cases of domestic violence after it stopped the couple’s van two weeks before the killing, during which a physical altercation between the pair was admitted to.
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