Body found believed to be missing woman

MOOSE, Wyo. — Authorities said a body found Sunday in Wyoming is believed to be that of a woman who disappeared while on a cross-country trek with her boyfriend, who has been identified by authorities as a person of interest and is now being sought within a Florida nature preserve.

The FBI said the body was found by law enforcement agents who had spent the past two days searching campgrounds for Gabrielle “Gabby” Petito.

The cause of death has not yet been determined, said FBI Supervisory Special Agent Charles Jones.

“Full forensic identification has not been completed to confirm 100% that we found Gabby, but her family has been notified,” Jones said. “This is an incredibly difficult time for [Petito’s] family and friends.”

An undeveloped camping area on the east side of Grand Teton bordering national forestland will remain closed until further notice while the investigation continues, Jones said.

Jones said investigators are still seeking information from anyone who may have seen Petito or Brian Laundrie around the campsites, the same area that was the subject of search efforts over the weekend.

Petito and Laundrie left in July on a cross-country trek in a converted van to visit national parks in the West. Police said Laundrie was alone when he drove the van back to his parents’ home in North Port, Fla., on Sept. 1.

Laundrie has been identified as a person of interest in the case. He was last seen Tuesday by family members in Florida.

More than 50 officers on Sunday started a second day of searching for Laundrie at the more than 24,000-acre Carlton Reserve in Sarasota County, Fla. The wildlife area has more than 100 miles of trails, as well as campgrounds.

Petito’s family filed a missing-person report Sept. 11 with police in Suffolk County, N.Y.

Petito and Laundrie’s trek in the Ford Transit van began in July from Long Island. They intended to reach Oregon by the end of October, according to their social media accounts. But Petito vanished after her last known contact with family members in late August from Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming, authorities said.

Video released by the Moab Police Department in Utah showed that an officer pulled over the van on Aug. 12 after it was seen speeding and hitting a curb near the entrance to Arches National Park. The body-camera video showed an emotional Petito, who sat inside a police cruiser while officers questioned Laundrie.