Authorities are still searching for 22-year-old Gabby Petito, who was reported missing by her family this past weekend.
The travel blogger had been on an extended road trip through the western United States with her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie — who has since returned, and is refusing to talk to authorities, per law enforcement.
Petito's family — who have not heard from their daughter since late August — have pleaded with Laundrie and his family to cooperate in a bid to bring her home.
Laundrie is a person of interest in the case after it was reported that police officers in Moab, Utah, responded to a dispute between the pair in mid-August. For his part, an attorney for the Laundrie family said in a Tuesday statement that they are "remaining in the background at this juncture and will have no further comment."
Authorities from the North Port police in Florida to the FBI are investigating the case.
Here is everything we know so far...
Petito and Laundrie left in June
In a Thursday news briefing, North Port Police Chief Todd Garrison said that Petito and her fiancé, Laundrie, left for a cross country trip in June, per CNN.
Originally from Blue Point, New York, Petito lives with Laundrie and his parents in North Port. The travel blogger has been documenting their trips across the country together since 2019 — on Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok.
According to Garrison, the pair traveled in Petito's white Ford van to the West Coast, where they would visit state national parks. He added that she was excited to share the journey with her family, friends, and social media followers.
"She maintained regular contact with her family members during her travels, however, that communication abruptly stopped around the end of August," he said.
On July 2, Petito and Laundrie left Long Island, and continued to post pictures of national parks and hot springs using the hashtag, "van life".
Her most recent Instagram post was published on August 25. There has been nothing since.
Petito and Laundrie engaged in "some sort of altercation"
Police in Moab, Utah, reported an encounter with the couple on 12 August. Officers described the pair as having "engaged in some sort of altercation".
"Both the male and female reported they are in love and engaged to be married and desperately didn't wish to see anyone charged with a crime," a report from officer Eric Pratt said.
Officers suggested that the couple separate for the night, adding that each individual had their own cell phone in case of an emergency. Laundrie was brought to a hotel, while Petito stayed in the van. Both were told to "take advantage of this time apart to relax their emotions, and regain control of their anxiety."
Petito was described as "confused and emotional", and reported, "serious anxiety" that was made worse by "little arguments she and Brian had been having all day".
Laundrie claimed that Petito had become "manic" from fear that he would leave her stranded in the desert. During the argument, Petito reportedly scratched Laundrie's face and arms. He said that he felt safe and did not appear to have hurt his fiancée physically — as concluded by law enforcement.
"After evaluating the totality of the circumstances, I do not believe the situation escalated to the level of a domestic assault as much as that of a mental health crisis," officer Daniel Robbins said.
No charges were filed, and the altercation was labeled as a "mental [or] emotional break" rather than domestic assault.
Petito's last contact with family
Petito's family told North Port police that they were last in contact with their daughter during the last week of August. Before this communication, the 22-year-old is believed to have been in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.
In a news conference on Thursday, Richard Stafford — the Petito family's lawyer — detailed that the last contact they had with her was on August 30. However, they did not believe that the message they received was from Petito herself.
Stafford declined to share what the message said, or why her family did not believe it came from their daughter.
Laundrie returns to Florida
On September 1, Laundrie returned to his and Petito's North Port home, per law enforcement.
Police later recovered Petito's vehicle — which the couple had been traveling in — at the home they share with Laundrie's parents.
After being processed, it was discovered that "there was some material in there", which authorities are currently going through, per North Port police spokesperson Josh Taylor.
Petito's family, who live in New York, reported her missing on Saturday evening to the Suffolk County, New York, police department. While North Port authorities visited the Laundrie's home on Saturday night to speak to them, they were "essentially handed the information for their attorney", per Taylor.
"That is the extent of our conversation with them."
Petito's family appeal for information
In a letter read by the Petito's family attorney during the law enforcement's Thursday news briefing, her family pleaded with Laundrie's family for information.
"Please, if you or your family have any decency left, please, tell us where Gabby is located," they said. "Tell us if we are even looking in the right place. All we want is for Gabby to come home. Please help us make that happen. We haven't been able to sleep or eat, and our lives are falling apart."
The lawyer said that the family contacted Laundrie's family earlier this month for information, but they refused to answer.
On September 15, North Port police said that Laundrie had neither "made himself available to be interviewed by investigators," nor "provided any helpful details."
In a statement, North Port police chief, Todd Garrison said: "We are pleading with anyone, including Brian, to share information with us on her whereabouts in the past few weeks.
"The lack of information from Brian is hindering this investigation. The answers will eventually come out. As a father, I can imagine the pain and suffering Gabby’s family is going through."
Laundrie's attorney, Steven Bertolino said in a statement to CBS2 New York:
"In my experience, intimate partners are often the first person law enforcement focuses their attention on in cases like this and the warning that 'any statement made will be used against you' is true, regardless of whether my client had anything to do with Ms. Petito’s disappearance.
"As such, on the advice of counsel, Mr. Laundrie is not speaking on this matter."
As a result, he and his family "will continue to remain silent on the advice of counsel."
Speaking to CBS2, Petito's father, Joseph, said: "If you’re hiking a trail and stuff like that and you see her, you can turn around: ‘That’s Gabby … Gabby, here is my phone. You need to call your folks right now."
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