Police in Florida said the disappearance of a 22-year-old woman is still being investigated as a missing person case and called on the public to provide any information that might help them bring the woman home safe. Gabby Petito was reported missing on September 11 by her family after her fiancé returned home to Florida alone from a cross-country road trip.
Todd Garrison, the police chief in North Port, said no criminality is suspected at this time. No physical search teams are currently on the ground as investigators are working to narrow down areas to investigate, he said.
Police said her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, has refused to speak with law enforcement. Police have identified Laundrie as a person of interest but Garrison said investigators are solely focused on finding Petito.
“Two people went on a trip, one person returned and that person that returned isn’t providing us with any information,” Garrison said Thursday. “My focus isn’t to bring Brian in right now. My focus is finding Gabby.”
Petito was last seen on August 24 checking out of a Salt Lake City hotel with Laundrie. She is last believed to have been in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. Police have seized the 2012 Ford Transit van that the couple was traveling in.
Police in Moab, Utah, confirmed on Wednesday that their officers responded to an incident involving the two on August 12. According to a police report, officers responded to a reported domestic assault but concluded there were no significant injuries reported and it was more accurately categorized as a “mental health break” than a domestic assault.
Police say Petito was “crying uncontrollably.” Laundrie told police they got in an argument, Petito thought he was going to leave her without a ride and went to slap him.
The report says, “Brian explained he and Gabrielle have been traveling together for the last four or five months. That time spent created emotional strain between them and increased the number of arguments. After arguing – ‘Gabrielle had gone into a manic state.'”
Laundrie allegedly told police he and Petito both suffered from a mental condition and that neither take medication. Police determined the altercation did not rise to the level of domestic assault, and Laundrie and Petito were told to separate for the night, the report said. Laundrie was given a hotel room.
