Brian Laundrie Murder Case Update: Gabby Petito Died of Blunt-Force Injuries Apart from Strangulation
The F.B.I. completed its investigation into the murder of Gabby Petito on Friday, releasing new information about the case after a month-long probe. If what is known about the case is horrendous enough, the police now released more stomach-turning findings.
According to the FBI's official statement, the 22-year-old victim died of "blunt-force injuries to the head and neck" in addition to "manual strangulation/throttling" as initially determined by Teton County Coroner Brent Blue.
The latter was initially reported and many were already devastated by that finding, but the former seems to paint a much grimmer picture of what truly transpired.
The FBI determined that Petito was murdered by her deceased fiancé, Brian Laundrie, a 23-year-old who later committed suicide. This means that before strangling her, he hit her with such a scary amount of force.
"All logical investigative steps have been concluded in this case," said FBI Denver Division Special Agent in Charge Michael Schneider. "The investigation did not identify any other individuals other than Brian Laundrie directly involved in the tragic death of Gabby Petito."
Her death had already been deemed a homicide by Blue.
Additionally, the FBI found a journal near Brian's body where he admitted to the horrific crime.
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"A review of the notebook revealed written statements by Mr. Laundrie claiming responsibility for Ms. Petito's death," explained Schneider, who said Brian went to great lengths to try to cover his trail.
According to the news release, multiple text communications were found between Mr. Laundrie's phone and Ms. Petito's phone after she died. "After Ms. Petito's death, there were several text messages identified between Mr. Laundrie's telephone and Ms. Petito's telephone," read the press rel ease. "The timing and content of these messages are indicative of Mr. Laundrie attempting to deceive law enforcement by giving the impression that Ms. Petito was still alive."
Just hours before Schneider's announcement, Gabby's family released a statement labeling Brian a murderer.
Thanking the Bureau for its "painstaking efforts" in uncovering what happened to their daughter, Gabby's parents said they felt that "the facts and information collected by the FBI leave no doubt the Brian Laundrie murdered Gabby."
On the 1st of September, Brian returned home early and without her from their vacation, which worried her family. The search for Gabby began after 10 days of no communication from her parents or cooperation from the Laundries.
Investigators discovered her corpse on Sept. 19 in a Wyoming national park where she and Brian had traveled with the help of concerned members of the public and dedicated internet sleuths.
Laundrie escaped during the never-ending search for Petito. A wildlife park in Florida near his parents' house discovered his skeleton remains on October 21.
In the end, a medical examiner ruled that Brian died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to his head. The Internet went into a frenzy, claiming it was such a cowardly thing to do, in order to escape the justice system.
