The FBI’s office in Denver announced Thursday that a warrant for Brian Laundrie, the 23-year-old fiancé of Gabby Petito, has been issued. Laundrie is a “person of interest” in Petito’s homicide case, and law enforcement has been unable to find him since he became a “person of interest.”
From August 30 to September 1, the United States District Court for the District of Wyoming issued a single-count indictment against him. Laundry “knowingly and with the intent to deceive, utilized one or more fraudulent access devices, specifically a Capital One Bank debit card.” After obtaining fraudulent personal identification numbers and bank account numbers from Capital One Bank customers, Laundrie arranged for his accomplices to obtain new credit cards in their names, according to the indictment. The complaint states that Laundrie “reaped profits of $1,000 or more” as a result of this illegal conduct.
The charging papers do not mention Petito by name, and the FBI simply stated that the warrant was “related to Mr. Laundrie’s actions following the death of Gabrielle Petito.”
While this warrant allows law imposition to arrest Laundrie, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and our partners across the country continue to investigate Ms. Petito’s murder, according to the Denver Special Agent in Charge of the FBI, Michael Schneider. “We urge anyone with information about Mr. Laundrie’s role in this matter or his present whereabouts to contact
Attorney Steven Bertolino, the family’s attorney, said to CSU News that he believes Laundrie’s arrest warrant is “connected to events that occurred after Gabby Petito died and not to her death itself.”
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“The FBI is concentrating on finding Brian, and when they do, the nature of the allegations included in the indictment will be addressed in a court of law,” Bertolino added.
Police are on the lookout for Laundrie in Florida’s Carlton Reserve, where they’re using airboats, drones, ATVs, and the Sarasota mobile command unit, according to CSU affiliate WINK. Police spent eight hours searching Laundrie’s parents’ house Monday, looking for clues to his whereabouts.
When Laundrie and Petito took a cross-country road trip in a white 2012 Ford Transit van, they were engaged. On August 12, a witness informed cops that the couple had a domestic quarrel. The incident was labeled as a mental health break rather than a domestic dispute by responding officers, who stated no one wanted to bring charges.
On September 1, after missing for a week, Laundrie returned home without Petito. Petito’s parents notified authorities on September 11 that she was missing, prompting a search across the country. During the investigation, Laundrie refused to cooperate with police, which hindered the case, according to investigators.
On Tuesday, the FBI in Denver announced that a body discovered in Wyoming was Gabby Petito. The initial autopsy revealed that death was caused by murder, but investigators are still waiting for final autopsy results.
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