Gabby Petito's mom has spoken out about Brian Laundrie's notebook confession.
Laundrie admitted he murdered his fiancée Petito in the notebook, claiming he did it in order to "take away" her pain.
Now, in an interview with NBC News, Petito's mother, Nicole Schmidt, has said that the claim was "ridiculous".
"That was his character, even in his last moments," she told the outlet. "He wanted to make sure he looked like the good guy. That's ridiculous. We know how she died."
Schmidt's comments come after the family's lawyer, Steven Bertolino, released photographs of the killer's notebook. Laundrie, 23, was the subject of a nationwide manhunt after the remains of his fiancée, 22-year-old blogger Petito, were found in Grand Teton National Park on September 19, 2021. Coroners ruled that she had died by strangulation.
The pair had been on a road trip when they first went missing. After several weeks of searching for the suspected killer, authorities discovered Laundrie's remains on October 21 2021.
His death was ruled by suicide in November 2021.
In the notebook, he claimed Petito had injured herself in a creek. "I don’t know the extent of Gabby’s injurys (sic). Only that she was in extreme pain," he wrote, before confessing to her murder.
"I ended her life. I thought it was merciful, that it is what she wanted, but I see now all the mistakes I made," the notebook read.
"I panicked. I was in shock. But from the moment I decided, took away her pain, I knew I couldn't go on without her," the killer continued.
Travel blogger Petito was first reported missing in September 2021, after her family stopped receiving communication from her.
Several weeks later, the 22-year-old's remains were found on a campsite in Teton County, Wyoming. The coroner ruled that she died by strangulation.
Laundrie had returned to the couple's home on September 1 without his fiancée. A few weeks later he disappeared. After a warrant was put out for his arrest, a nationwide manhunt ensued.
But Laundrie was never taken into custody; a few weeks later, his remains were found in a Florida nature preserve beside his backpack and a notebook containing his confession. A medical examiner later ruled he died by suicide.
This is not the first time that Petito's mother has spoken out about Laundrie's notebook confession. After Bertolino released the pages last month, the grieving mother took to Twitter and appeared to brand him a "narcissist".
"Narcissists rewrite history to escape accountability," she tweeted.
