A month after the discovery of the skeletal remains of Brian Laundrie, his family’s lawyer announced to the American media on Tuesday: Gabby Petito’s fiancé committed suicide by a gunshot to the head, according to the findings of a forensic anthropologist. The FBI has yet to officially confirm the information. Brian Laundrie had been wanted for more than a month as a “person of interest” in the investigation into the death of his partner Gabby Petito, a 22-year-old American who was strangled in late August in Wyoming.
“Chris and Roberta Laundrie have been told that the cause of death (of Brian Laundrie) was a gunshot wound to the head, and the way it was, suicide. They still mourn the death of their son and hope that these findings will help the two families to mourn, ”family lawyer Steve Bertolino told ABC and Fox News.
Complex autopsy
A first autopsy entrusted to the forensic pathologist of Sarasota County, Florida, could not be decided with certainty. Brian Laundrie’s remains were then analyzed by a forensic anthropologist specializing in the study of skeletal corpses.
The lawyer did not give details on the provenance of the weapon. Last month, the FBI did not mention finding a gun among the belongings of Brian Laundrie found near his remains, which spent several weeks submerged in a swampy area.
Gabby Petito’s fiancé had returned alone from their road trip on September 1. The traveller’s body was discovered two weeks later in a Wyoming national park. The autopsy concluded in a homicide by “manual strangulation”.