The family of Gabby Petito have accused Brian Laundrie's lawyer, Steven Bertolino, of using images of the 22-year-old to "gain business".
This comes after the FBI confirmed in a news conference that the remains of the travel vlogger had been found in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming.
In a letter addressed to Bertolino, sent through the Petito family's lawyer, Richard Stafford, they demanded that Bertolino "remove Gabby Petito’s picture from his Yelp page."
The letter added: "Cease and desist posting pictures of Gabby Petito to any and all of your social media pages, web pages or advertisements in an effort to gain business."
A copy of the statement — which detailed that the family had given Bertolino until 2:00PM to make the changes, or risk further action — was shared by NewsNationNow correspondent, Brian Entin, to Twitter.
Bertolino issued a statement in response to the letter, as reported by Entin.
It read: "This is sad. I have never used social media or any other electronic platform for advertising other than maintaining a website. I do not control the internet sites nor the hacks and public that have been overrunning the internet with fake comments and posts.
"Yesterday Yelp had shut down its page for my firm due to inordinate and unconfirmed posts. I would certainly agree with Mr Stafford that any such post he is referring to should be removed but advise him that I have no control over that Yelp site."
Earlier this week, Bertolino was criticized by Petito's family following the news that her remains had been formally identified by the FBI on Tuesday (September 21).
The lawyer had issued a statement, reading, "May Gabby rest in peace."
Petito's uncle, Steve, told Fox News that his family "don’t require nor want your empathy."
"As far as the law is concerned this law firm may be immune due to attorney/client privilege," Mr Petito, the brother of Ms Petito’s father Joe, wrote on Instagram.
"But in the eyes of the public you are as guilty and complicit with this massive cover-up and stalling tactic," he said. "We don’t require nor want your empathy. By you trying to show compassion here at this moment is beyond disgusting."
Petito - whose death has been ruled by the coroner's preliminary findings as a homicide - went missing while on a road trip across the US with her fiancé, Brian Laundrie — who has since disappeared.
Laundrie has been named "a person of interest" in the case, after he returned home to Florida alone and reportedly refused to cooperate with law enforcement.
North Port police resumed their search for Laundrie in the Carlton reserve on Tuesday (September 21). "A weekend ground search and aerial search Monday of the 25,000-acre reserve has yet to yield any answers, but we must press on," spokesperson Josh Taylor said.
"Large parts of the reserve are underwater, and packed with dangerous wildlife," he continued. "Please be aware, the Carlton Reserve is a vast and unforgiving location at times. It is currently waist-deep in water in many areas."
