The attorney of Gabby Petito's family has said that the 22-year-old's boyfriend "is not missing, he is hiding."
This comes after authorities reported that 23-year-old Brian Laundrie has not been seen by his family since Tuesday.
Over the summer, Gabby and Brian had been traveling in their converted van on a cross-country trek. However, on September 1, Laundrie returned back to his parents' house in North Port, Florida, in the couple's van.
Gabby was not with him.
Her family reported her missing on September 11, and her disappearance is now part of an ongoing FBI investigation.
In a news conference on Thursday, it was revealed that Petito's last contact with her family was on August 30 via a text message - but her mother has since told the Daily Mail that she believes the message was fake and not from her daughter.
She was last seen on August 30 while traveling in the couple's white van with Laundrie, the New York Post reports.
On Friday (September 17), North Port police spokesperson Josh Taylor told CNN's Chris Cuomo that Brian is now missing. "We've been trying all week to talk to his family, to talk to Brian, and now they've called us here on Friday, we've gone to the home, and they're saying now they have not seen their son," Taylor said.
The 23-year-old's disappearance was also confirmed by the Laundrie family's attorney.
In an accompanying statement, Taylor said: "We are not currently working a crime investigation. We are now working a multiple missing person investigations."
Prior to his disappearance, it was reported that Laundrie had not been cooperative when speaking with authorities regarding his girlfriend's disappearance. North Port police chief Todd Garrison said: "The lack of information from Brian is hindering this investigation. The answers will eventually come out."
Now, in response the Laundrie going missing, the Petito's family attorney, Richard Stafford, has said in a statement to CNN: "All of Gabby's family want the world to know that Brian is not missing, he is hiding. Gabby is missing."
Jim Schmidt, Gabby's stepfather, responded to the news by telling Cuomo on Friday: "I don't know what to believe."
Schmidt says that although he's happy Brian's parents contacted the police, the news "caught him off guard".
Nevertheless, he has stressed: "All that matters is finding [Gabby] and bringing her home."
"We're still trying to get the word out there and try to find that one person that might have some details that we need," he said. "Just trying to get out there and find that person and hopefully they can help us with anything that will bring her home."
The FBI is encouraging anyone with information on Gabby Petito’s whereabouts to call its tip line at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324).
