On October 21, over a month after his disappearance, the remains Brian Laundrie were identified. The body was found in Carlton Reserve in Sarasota County, Florida along with a backpack and notebook also identified as belonging to Laundrie.
He was identified via dental records. The skeletal remains matched the physical description, including clothing, of Brian Laundrie when he disappeared on September 13.
According to police spokesperson Josh Taylor, “the notebook to my understanding has not been opened. That will need to be processed.” Sources claim the notebook was possibly salvageable but was located out of the dry bag and had clearly gotten wet when authorities located the body.
Steven Bertolino, the Laundrie family’s attorney, stated “The remains found in the reserve are indeed Brian’s. We have no further comment at this time, and we ask that you respect the Laundrie’s privacy at this time” in a message to the media.
On September 11, Gabby Petito, a 22-year-old van life vlogger was reported missing. This was ten days after her boyfriend Brian Laundrie returned to his home North Port, Florida from their road trip to Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming without Petito in tow.
On September 17, two days after he was announced as a person of interest on the case, Laundrie’s family reported him missing and that they had not seen him since September 14. Since then, authorities have been on the search for both Petito and Laundrie. Petito’s body was found September 19. The cause of death was ruled to be strangulation.
While searching for Petito and Laundrie, the remains of other missing persons’ have been discovered. These include missing hiker 43-year-old Robert Lowery, an unidentified homeless man, 33-year-old Josue Calderon, Sara Bayard, and Lauren Cho.
Want more information on the Gabby Petito case? Check out this article from the beginning of the case.
