Gabby Petito's friends are giving more insight into her life before her untimely death while they hold out hope for answers.
A lot of people following the story of the 22-year-old van-life enthusiast's disappearance and murder felt a pit in their stomachs with news that human remains were discovered near the much-searched Carlton Reserve on October 20, 2021. It's far from the first time that remains had been found, as nine bodies have been discovered in the process of searches for Gabby and her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, a person of interest in her death.
As the world waited to find out whether or not Brian was alive, her friends held out hope that he would be found and justice would be served. Sadly, the FBI confirmed news on the evening of October 21 that the skeletal remains found were identified using dental records to be those of Brian Laundrie.
Many people have wondered what Brian Laundrie's parents, Chris and Roberta, knew of the relationship between their son and Gabby Petito. The two were believed to be living with the Laundries prior to embarking on their van-life trip, but now one of Gabby's closest friends is indicating otherwise.
"She did not live with the Laundrie parents," Gabby's friend, Rose Davis, said in a live TikTok video.
"They had a condo that the parents paid for."
Davis also shared that she expected to hear from Petito on August 29 because it was her birthday. The two had even entertained meeting up somewhere along their travels at some point, but it never came to pass.
On October 20, skeletal human remains were found at the Myakkahatchee Park near belongings that are believed to be Brian Laundrie's. Many held out hope that Brian was alive, including Petito's friends.
"If Brian is dead, the problem is that no one will ever really know what happened or why it happened," Petito's friend Alyssa Chen told People.
"We'll never have answers," Chen continued.
"That's why I want him to be alive, because we won't get answers otherwise. It'll be a double tragedy for him to be dead."
A high school friend who knew both Petito and Laundrie, Ben Matula, believes Laundrie may have taken his own life.
"If it's him, he didn't want to face the music. He had a lot of things he had to account for, and he can't do that if he's dead," Matula said.
"Except to God," Matula continued.
"If he's meeting his maker, I hope he got things right before he died. But death is the easy way out."
Like other friends, Matula had hoped Laundrie was alive.
"I actually hope it's not him," he said before the identification was confirmed.
"Because that means he never has to answer for what happened to Gabby."
Many were prepared for the news, however, because of comments from the Laundrie family attorney, Steve Bertolino.
"The probability is strong that it is Brian's remains," Bertolino said during an appearance on CNN.
"It's quite sad, you can imagine as a parent, finding your son's belongings alongside some remains. That's got to be heartbreaking. And I can tell you that they are heartbroken."
Since the news of Laundrie's death was confirmed, there have been few reactions from Petito's loved ones.
A lawyer for Petito's family simply stated, "They are grieving the loss of their beautiful daughter. Gabby's family will make a statement at the appropriate time and when they are emotionally ready."
Gabby Petito's friends have not spoken out since the news broke, but someone else invested in the outcome has. Dog the Bounty Hunter is speaking out, and he's saying what is on the minds of many.
"If the Laundrie parents had fully cooperated from the beginning, Brian Laundrie might still be alive," he remarked.
"The positive ID of Brian Laundrie's remains gives some measure of closure to this case, if not to Gabby's family, who will likely now never know what truly happened."
The public reaction to the identification of the remains has been largely somber. There's the devastating reality that unchecked domestic violence was likely at the heart of this whole tragedy. It's heartbreaking to know how many little differences could have changed the outcome of this, with two young people dead and what seems like very few answers for all.
