TWIST IN LI MYSTERY
Missing gal’s beau ‘speaks’
The boyfriend of the Long Island woman who mysteriously vanished on the couple’s crosscountry trip broke his silence Tuesday — then was promptly slammed by her family for continuing to dodge investigators.
Brian Laundrie issued a statement saying that it was “an extremely difficult time for both the Petito family and Laundrie family.” “I understand that a search has been organized for Miss Petito in or near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming,” said the statement, released through his attorney, Steven Bertolino, and obtained by ABC News. “On behalf of the Laundrie family it is our hope that the search for Miss Petito is successful and that Miss Petito is reunited with her family.”
It added, “On advice of counsel the Laundry family is remaining in the background at this juncture and will have no further comment.” Petito, 22, who was believed to be in Grand Teton National Park in late August with Laundrie, was last heard from on Aug. 25.
It was revealed late Tuesday that Utah police responded to an “incident” involving the pair two weeks before then.
“Our officers did respond to an incident involving Brian Laundrie and Gabrielle Petito on 12 August 2021,” Moab Chief of Police Bret Edge told Fox News.
“Officers conducted an investigation and determined that insufficient evidence existed to justify criminal charges,” Edge added.
Further information about the Utah incident was not released.
Laundrie, also 22 and Petito’s boyfriend of 2¹/2 years, has since returned to his North Port, Fla. home in the converted van the couple had been traveling in — with Petito nowhere to be found.
She was reported missing by her mother on Saturday.
Hours after Laundrie released his statement, Petito’s family responded, pleading for his help.
“The Schmidt and Petito family are going through the worst moments of their lives,” they said, according to NBC New York. “Brian is refusing to tell Gabby’s family where he last saw her. Brian is also refusing to explain why he left Gabby all alone and drove her van to Florida. These are critical questions that require immediate answers.
“How does Brian stay in the background when he is the one person that knows where Gabby is located?”
North Port police spokesman Josh Taylor told The Post that Laundrie’s parents refused to put cops in touch with him — and told them to speak to his lawyer instead.
“We talked with his parents, who did not make him available,” Taylor said. “We would love to [talk to him]. He certainly has whatever rights he has available. We will see how it goes. We are roughly 72 hours into this.”
Police were spotted dropping off an envelope at the Laundrie home Tuesday morning, and then knocking on neighbors’ doors as part of their investigation.
The couple left New York on July 2 on a coast-to-coast trek, and were due to wrap up the trip visiting friends in Oregon on Halloween.
Schmidt said she last spoke to her daughter on FaceTime around Aug. 25 and last received a text from her cellphone on Aug. 30.
“She seemed OK to me at the time,” Schmidt told news station KSL-TV, “other than I don’t know where the relationship was going with the boyfriend.”