The grieving family of Gabby Petito spoke out in a press conference on Tuesday, calling on her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, to turn himself in to authorities. Laundrie has been at large since police declared him a person of interest in Petito’s murder, and he is wanted for illegal use of her debit card after her death. The Petito family is asking for him to give up the chase so that the whole issue can be put to rest.
“The Laundries did not help us find Gabby, they’re sure as not going to help us find Brian. For Brian, we’re asking you to turn yourself in to the FBI or the nearest law enforcement organization,” the Petitos’ attorney, Richard Stafford, said in a press conference on Tuesday, according to a report by CBS News. Petito, 22 and Laundrie, 23, were on a cross-country road trip when Petito disappeared earlier this month. Her remains were later found in Wyoming, and police have ruled her cause of death a homicide.
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“Our focus is still on mourning Gabby and honoring Gabby. The FBI is doing everything they can and we have our full faith in them,” added Petito’s stepfather, Jim Schimdt, at the conference. Her father, Joe Petito, announced the creation of the Gabby Petito Foundation in her honor, saying: “We need positive stuff to come from the tragedy that happened. We can’t let her name be taken in vain. We need positive stuff, so anything that we can do to bring that up and help people, that’s what we want to do.”
Various law enforcement agencies are still conducting a massive manhunt for Laundrie, who disappeared on Sept. 14 — the day before police named him as a person of interest. Laundrie drove the camper van he shared with Petito from Wyoming back to their home in North Port, Florida alone after her disappearance, and the Petito family said that he refused to help locate her after that or disclose when he last saw her. The police said that he was uncooperative in their investigation.
Laundrie’s family then said that they had not seen him in days, and police began combing the wilderness for him. They believed that Laundrie could be hiding out and camping in the Carlton Reserve — a 24,000-acre area of Sarasota, Florida. Although he is only a person of interest in Petito’s murder, he is wanted on a federal charge of unauthorized use of Petito’s debit card after her disappearance, when he reportedly withdrew over $1,000 from her account.
While Petito’s case is still mired in mystery, her family is seeking what closure they can find while Laundrie remains at large. The warrant for his arrest stipulates that anyone caught aiding or abetting him can be arrested as well.
