The story about the tragic end of Gabby Petito's life gripped the nation, but it's not quite over.
Petito's parents have just filed a lawsuit against Brian Laundrie's parents. In it, they allege that the two, Roberta and Christopher Laundrie, knew that their son killed Petito.
They also say that the parents helped their son flee from the manhunt that followed the 22-year-old influencer's tragic death last year.
Gabby Petito's parents suspected something was off when they couldn't reach their daughter back in August 2021 as she traveled the country with Brian Laundrie. Soon after, they learned that Brian had returned to his parents' home in Florida. While the Laundrie family knew that Gabby was not with Brian, they apparently didn't inform her parents of that. Serious alarm bells went off for Gabby's parents that no one told them that Brian had come home without their daughter.
After weeks of searching, Gabby Petito's body was located in Grand Teton National Park. A medical examiner determined she died by homicidal strangulation. For weeks, the search continued for Brian Laundrie. Finally, in October, the search came to an end when his body was found in the Florida wilderness. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
What most people who had been following the devastating case believed turned out to be true. Brian Laundrie was determined to be responsible for the death of Gabby Petito. In addition to the mounting physical and circumstantial evidence, a confession letter was found with Laundrie's belongings.
Once Brian Laundrie was found dead, people started to look more closely at his parents. It seemed unlikely that they knew nothing about their son's whereabouts. There were also some reports coming out that they hadn't been fully truthful with authorities.
Now, Gabby Petito's parents have taken those suspicions one step further. This week, Joseph Petito and Nicole Schmidt took legal action by filing a lawsuit that alleges Brian Laundrie's parents purposefully tried to conceal their daughter's murder.
"It is believed, and therefore averred that … Brian Laundrie advised his parents, Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie, that he had murdered Gabrielle Petito," the lawsuit obtained by WFLA states. "On that same date, Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie spoke with Attorney Steve Bertolino, and sent him a retainer on Sept. 2, 2021."
The lawsuit also states that while the Petito family was desperate for information about their daughter's whereabouts, the Laundries cut off communication with them. "While Joseph Petito and Nichole Schmidt were desperately searching for information concerning their daughter, Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie were keeping the whereabouts of Brian Laundrie secret, and it is believed were making arrangements for him to leave the country," the lawsuit alleges.
The Petitos are seeking at least $100,000 in damages for the pain and mental anguish.
