Oct 20, 2021, 2:19 PM EDT
FBI confirms 'items of interest' found
The FBI said "items of interest" in connection to the search for Laundrie were found at the Carlton Reserve Wednesday morning and an evidence response team is processing the scene.
How the search for Brian Laundrie unfolded
Brian Laundrie is a person of interest in the death of his girlfriend.
Last Updated: October 22, 2021, 6:22 AM EDT
A massive search for Brian Laundrie, the boyfriend of slain 22-year-old travel blogger Gabby Petito, took a dramatic twist Thursday with the announcement that human remains found in a Florida nature preserve are those of the wanted fugitive, according to the FBI.
The remains were recovered Wednesday, nearly five weeks after Petito's body was recovered in the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming. The Teton County Coroner ruled her death a homicide by strangulation.
The search for the 23-year-old Laundrie was centered around North Port, Florida, where investigators said he returned to his home on Sept. 1 without Petito but driving her 2012 Ford Transit.
Laundrie had been named by police as a "person of interest" in Petito's disappearance and a federal warrant had been issued for him alleging unauthorized use of Petito's credit card.
He refused to speak to the police and vanished on Sept. 13. His parents told investigators they believed he was headed to the Carlton Reserve in North Port.
The case grabbed national attention as Laundrie and Petito had been traveling across the country since June, documenting the trip on social media. Petito's parents reported her missing on Sept. 11 after not hearing from her for two weeks.
Here is how the weekslong search for Laundrie unfolded:
Key events
- Oct 20, 2021, 4:42 PM EDT
- Oct 20, 2021, 1:05 PM EDT
- Oct 07, 2021, 11:41 AM EDT
- Oct 05, 2021, 11:11 PM EDT
- Oct 01, 2021, 4:27 PM EDT
- Sep 20, 2021, 6:34 PM EDT
- Sep 20, 2021, 1:44 PM EDT
All times Eastern.
Oct 20, 2021, 1:05 PM EDT
Cadaver dog team called to scene
A human remains detection team was requested by North Port Police to go to Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park to assist in the search for Laundrie, the Pasco County Sheriff's Office told ABC News
The team consists of one dog, a handler and two spotters.
WFTS
-ABC News' Aaron Katersky
Oct 20, 2021, 12:22 PM EDT
Articles belonging to Laundrie found in Florida nature park: Attorney
Articles belonging to Brian Laundrie were found Wednesday by his parents, said Stephen Bertolino, an attorney for Laundrie's family.
Bertolino said the articles were found while his parents searched off a trail that Laundrie frequented in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in North Port, Florida, a nature park that's been the center of the search for Laundrie.
Law enforcement is now searching the area, Bertolino said.
The medical examiner’s office in Sarasota has been called to the preserve, a spokesperson for the office told ABC News.
Oct 11, 2021, 1:50 PM EDT
Body found in North Carolina national park not connected to Brian Laundrie: FBI
The discovery over the weekend of a body in the Blue Ridge Parkway National Park in North Carolina is not connected to the search for wanted fugitive Brian Laundrie, according to the FBI.
While law enforcement agencies have investigated several tips of Laundrie being spotted in North Carolina along the Appalachian Trail, which cuts through the Blue Ridge Parkway, officials said none of the purported sightings have panned out.
On Saturday afternoon, a Blue Ridge Parkway visitor discovered a body of a man below the park's Yadkin Valley Overlook, according to a statement from the National Parks Service. The identity of the body and a cause of death are pending the results of an autopsy, officials said.
The FBI, which is leading a nationwide search for Laundrie, released a statement to ABC affiliate station WSOC-TV in Charlotte on Sunday saying that while the discovery is part of an ongoing investigation, "At this time, there is no evidence to connect or any reason to believe it is related to the search for fugitive Brian Laundrie."
