The investigation into Brian Laundrie, including the murder of girlfriend Gabby Petito and his own cause of death, now raises questions on how much was known during the search for the missing fugitive. Many have questions about the gun he used to commit suicide, like when authorities found it. According to InTouch Weekly, Laundrie’s parents, Christopher and Roberta, were aware their son had a gun, and that theirs was missing on the day they reported him missing.
Laundrie’s parents voluntarily surrendered all of the guns in their home to police on Sept. 17 and were aware the handgun was missing. This means that both the Laundrie family and the FBI were aware of the weapon’s presence but didn’t report it to the public.
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Family attorney Steven Bertolino spoke with TMZ about the search’s latest details, revealed the gun details, and why the public wasn’t informed. According to TMZ, police felt it was best not to disclose the missing gun or that family’s knowledge that it was gone.
Laundrie’s body was discovered at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in North Port, Florida on Oct. 21. The initial autopsy returned inconclusive results and needed to be sent to a forensic anthropologist. A month later and a cause of death was uncovered and more questions were raised.
“Chris and Roberta Laundrie have been informed that the cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head and the manner of death was suicide,” Bertolino said in a Nov. 23 statement. “Chris and Roberta are still mourning the loss of their son and are hopeful that these findings bring closure to both families.”
TMZ questions the decision to bury the gun reveal, asking why no warning was shared with the public to warn away from approaching the suspect. But one can support the police decision given the publicity the case received, including the arrival of Dog the Bounty Hunter and John Walsh into the situation.
Laundrie is the sole person of interest in the death of ex-fiancee Gabby Petito. She was reported missing days before Laundrie and shortly after he returned home from a cross-country trip without her. Her cause of death was strangulation and police were treating it as a homicide.
