Found Deceased WY - Gabrielle ‘Gabby’ Petito, 22, Grand Teton National Park, 25 Aug 2021 #26

[cherrymeg]

He would be named as a suspect not POI if they found any postmortem DNA in the van when they collected it/searched it. So I think whatever happened was all outside near the creek. May have verbally started by the van but ended by the water. IMO

Could they also be calling him a POI in hopes that he might come in voluntarily? I think you are probably right about the van. People witnessed BL assaulting her outside the van before.

 

[wasnt_me]

What? If it doesn't belong to you, and you take it without permission from the owner, you've stolen it. Period.

Yes, and it's aggravated robbery if you take it after murdering her.

 

[SuziQ]

i wish we could go away from this narrative: they were in a long-term relationship. They BOTH worked on the van. They BOTH put money and sweat into it because they lived together and (IM ASSUMING) pooled resources like almost every other couple does, especially when you’re young and broke. They BOTH drove it. They BOTH lived in it. This isn’t a casual friendship where he stole the keys and took off. My husband and I have cars in each of our names but they’re OUR cars. We’d never say “don’t drive my car, it’s mine.” We are so hyper focused on him stealing her car when it’s clear it was theirs; regardless of the title.

People keep this narrative going because they incorrectly state the van belonged to both of them. That wouldn't hold up in court. The name on the title is the only owner. In this case it was Gabby. Her parents have stated this. Permission for Brian to drive the van ended the moment Gabby died. Imo, we will see auto theft and theft of her possessions tacked on to murder charges.

 

[captdj]

I think the massive search is for evidence, not necessarily BL himself. Her phone, a murder weapon, etc. I think they should be looking at boat ownership/marina info. JMO

The keys has people living on old boats and they row to town sometimes in old dingys . They are just out there in every channel even past key west going to the Marquesas and Dry Tortugas ... There was a boat one time that looked vacant and sinking but every morning the children would row to shore to go to school.

 

[Shellinaya]

I find it funny that as much as I have defended driving WY > FL in a short timespan that I am now here about to argue how it is not possible to go FL > WY > FL in three days. I would agree they could have set up at least one cache for Brian on that 3 day camping trip, somewhere! IMO.

It is not only not possible but why in the world would they do that?
Plus it's possible he's been lying to them about everything since the day he got back from WY.

They went on a camping trip to test out their new camper over the Labor Day holiday or thereabouts, but unless they were camping somewhere that was not a campground, it would have been chock full of other campers. I mean, most campgrounds are so full on Labor Day they are packed. Not a good time to plan for a fugitive life and get all that set up for him. Probably the worst possible time, IMO.

 

[Veronica Sawyer]

The best way to know is to follow their scanner chatter. That's how in the Christopher Dorner case that I was sure that he hadn't left the Big Bear area like a lot of people surmised.

Was that an FBI assisted case? I imagine they’re using a private chatter for Brian’s search. /JMO

 

[LinasK]

There is so far no evidence that *proves* he murdered her, but ALL the evidence *points* to it.

He had motive and opportunity and then he stole her van, leaving her thousands of miles away. So tell me what I'm missing.

What I don't understand is how I keep reading that he's not a suspect in a crime, yet the whole family home is considered a crime scene. How is that possible?

Police terminology. They call them a "Person of Interest" until they officially name them a suspect when they arrest them I think...

 

[Sassafrass]

Ok you’re right. Him putting money, time, effort, living in it, driving it, etc is completely irrelevant.

Yes, it is.

 

[BeckyF]

I do not believe they have said anything at all!

Yes they did. They said: "See my attorney". Not that that is lying to anyone.

 

[oviedo]

This is simply not true. Circumstantial evidence is enough to prove guilt. Most crimes don't involve a whole lot of direct evidence at all. And secondly, it does not need to be just any plausible alternate; the actual jury instruction here in CA says it must also be reasonable. If it's possible but not reasonable, the jury can and should disregard it.

Oh @riolove77 it’s so good to see you bring your prosecutorial expertise to Gabbys thread - I feel like all our verified lawyers are here for Gabby and it makes me very happy!

 

[shelbycat]

I watched the full bodycam video tonight on YT and one thing that struck me was when LE said they had to split up for 24 hours BL said GP could have the van and she had a driving licence, so police put him in a hotel (saying he was the victim of her violence), was when she said something along the lines of "Is it far to drive only I've never driven this van before." and at that point I wondered if BL had done it on purpose knowing she had never driven the van and didn't like to drive the van and maybe, possibly (JMO) knowing that she didn't feel safe spending a night in the van on her own? JMO MOO.

she didn’t say she had never driven the van…she said he usually drives the van. There are photos and video of her driving the van.

mo

 

[x_files]

Research reactive abuse.

THANK YOU!

 

[JayWill]

It’s going to be very difficult to prove IMO, unless they have something that ties him to to the moment she died.

I don't think it is going to be difficult to prove at all. There will be forensic evidence on her body. Her van was seen parked 900 yards from where her body was found and he turned up in the same van just days later. He used her credit card to buy gas.

 

[wasnt_me]

i wish we could go away from this narrative: they were in a long-term relationship. They BOTH worked on the van. They BOTH put money and sweat into it because they lived together and (IM ASSUMING) pooled resources like almost every other couple does, especially when you’re young and broke. They BOTH drove it. They BOTH lived in it. This isn’t a casual friendship where he stole the keys and took off. My husband and I have cars in each of our names but they’re OUR cars. We’d never say “don’t drive my car, it’s mine.” We are so hyper focused on him stealing her car when it’s clear it was theirs; regardless of the title.

Yeah, I can't agree with that. If someone is the victim of a homicide, and another person took their property, that's a crime, no matter who worked on it.

 

[sun16]

HERE IS LINK CONFIRMING RESTAURANT VISIT on 27th.
Log In or Sign Up to View

Yes, we can confirm Gabby and Brian were in Merry Piglets. We have not deleted any comments or messages on social media. The screen shots you see were direct messages to our account and not public. We have already notified the FBI and they are aware. We are letting them do their jobs and we are respecting Gabby's family and have nothing further to comment.
(I know perfectly well that I will lose this link in about 5 minutes and it will come up endlessly in the days ahead and need to be re-verified.. )

The Merry Piglets incident on 8/27 really did it for me. I believe he killed her later that day. Fits with the timeline of the witnesses who saw the van later that day, and the strange text re: Stan.

 

[Amandaaa]

Is it possible that initially, he was at the Reserve - with his backpack… he goes in and leaves his cell phone there.

Someone drives the mustang over and parks it at the Reserve.

They leave supplies, money, passport, new phone, etc… the car is picked up a day or two later, after he’s had a chance to grab everything - and he’s already off to another location…?

 

[RickshawFan]

The Appalachian Trail Southern Terminus is 9-10 hours up I-75

Google Maps

Someone just needs to get the word out to AT section/thru-hikers and hostel owners, and he's toast. Info goes up and down the trail super fast. On the trail, long-distance hikers have ALL day to pay attention to whoever else is on the trail, since besides moving their legs, the only other thing they're doing (except maybe eating and taking in an occasional view) is wondering, "Are we there yet?" All evening they're sitting around the campfire, generally with no amusement other than to shoot the breeze with other hikers. And what do they shoot the breeze about? Food and EVERYONE ELSE, including hinky people. On the benign side, it's about telling stories and wondering what's happened to xyz hiker they saw 3 weeks ago. On the safety side, it's who to stay away from, who's a bit strange, who's driving you crazy....
I was actually at a church hostel in Deleware Water Gap where the minister-in-charge's hinky meter registered HIGH, she called LE, and the guy was on the FBI wanted list. IIRC this wasn't a specific thing he did while in the hostel; she sized him up from the way he talked. I did, too (he said he was from Alaska and his name was Iditrod, but he didn't know how to spell it correctly, lol--it's Iditarod), but I had him sized up as a BS-er I wanted to avoid. For her, it was "likely criminal, call the cops".
Bottom line: BL is not going to be able to secrete himself amongst long-distance hikers on the AT. [Day hikers don't have as much time to shoot the breeze about everyone else, don't hang out much, and wouldn't be in a great position to evaluate a random person they came across, unless they were a WS-er, had the guy's portrait inscribed on their brain from being glued to 26 threads, had a full description and color of his pack, knew the diameter of his upper arms as well as his foot size and orientation of his tattoos.....]
IME

 

[jamicat]

There is so far no evidence that *proves* he murdered her, but ALL the evidence *points* to it.

He had motive and opportunity and then he stole her van, leaving her thousands of miles away. So tell me what I'm missing.

What I don't understand is how I keep reading that he's not a suspect in a crime, yet the whole family home is considered a crime scene. How is that possible?

Parents report that BL is missing and is endangered which means LE needs to look for him. That was first trigger. Then Gabby’s body is found. So that ups the ante significantly. Her things may well be in that house which can give clues to who might have killed her. I don’t know when that van was impounded but certainly it would be even more critical. Then, her death was declared a homicide.
At this point, if they could find him, they may well be able to question him. LE couldn’t even insist on seeing him until then. Had to take attorneys word that BL did not want to talk to cops and that was just too bad for LE.

 

[Balthazar]

Has anyone discussed/thought about if the incident happened in the van, and he moved the body, or if the incident happened out at the campsite?

We have to consider that Gabby's parents, siblings or friends might read this site. For that reason it is better to avoid creating elaborate theories of what might have happened not based on facts as it could cause the family and friends great distress in contemplating a theory that is completely false. Eventually the facts of what likely happened will be known, insofar as what LE has been able to piece together.

 

[whirrledpeas]

It is not only not possible but why in the world would they do that?
Plus it's possible he's been lying to them about everything since the day he got back from WY.

They went on a camping trip to test out their new camper over the Labor Day holiday or thereabouts, but unless they were camping somewhere that was not a campground, it would have been chock full of other campers. I mean, most campgrounds are so full on Labor Day they are packed. Not a good time to plan for a fugitive life and get all that set up for him. Probably the worst possible time, IMO.

Agree, but no one knew who Brian Laundrie was on Labor Day weekend.