Brian Laundrie: FBI says human remains, items found in Florida park


Another one of the items found was a notebook belonging to Laundrie, who McPherson said was “a person of interest in the murder of Gabby Petito.”

The apparent remains were found in an area that has been under water until recently, he said.

A source close to the investigation told CNN that the apparent human remains “appear to have been there a while.”

The source said “based on the condition of the remains, it may take some time to officially identify. It is going to be a very thorough process with the medical examiner.”

North Port Police Spokesman Josh Taylor said the remains were found “about 2 to 3 miles inside the Carlton Reserve, or about a 45-minute walk” from the entrance at Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park.

The FBI Tampa’s Evidence Response Team is on the scene using “all available forensic resources” to process the area. According to McPherson, it’s likely the team will be on the scene for several days.

“I know you have a lot of questions, but we don’t have all the answers yet,” he said reading a statement for the media.

Brian Laundrie’s parents, Chris and Roberta Laundrie, were in the park when the discovery took place, family attorney Steve Bertolino said.

“Chris and Roberta Laundrie were at the reserve earlier today when human remains and some of Brian’s possessions were located in an area where they had initially advised law enforcement that Brian may be,” Bertolino said. “Chris and Roberta will wait for the forensic identification of the human remains before making any additional comments.”

The discovery comes 37 days after Laundrie, the fiancé of Gabby Petito, was reportedly last seen by his parents.  

Earlier, the Sarasota County medical examiner and a cadaver dog were called to the park and aerial footage showed activity in the Carlton Reserve near the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park where Laundrie’s car was found parked in September.

Laundrie’s parents had informed the FBI and the North Port Police Department Tuesday night that they intended to come to the park on Wednesday morning to search for him, Bertolino said earlier. Law enforcement met them there Wednesday morning, he said.

A timeline of 22-year-old Gabby Petito's case
The Sarasota County Medical Examiner was called to the scene, and the Pasco County Sheriff’s office said a cadaver dog and two spotters were also on site. The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office Emergency Response Team and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office were also now on scene along with a mobile unit.
The discovery comes amid an exhaustive search for Laundrie that has now stretched over a month and as authorities try to piece together what happened to Petito.

The Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park is on 160 acres of heavily wooded land in North Port, Florida, with trails and a camping area. The park connects to the Carlton Reserve, a 25,000-acre nature reserve that has been the primary search location for investigators.

Searchers had previously used swamp buggies, divers and airboats to scour the swampy terrain, but the area has dried out recently due to clearer weather.

How we got here

Petito, 22, and Laundrie, 23, traveled around the western US in a white van this summer, all while regularly posting photos and stories to their social…



Read More: Brian Laundrie: FBI says human remains, items found in Florida park

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More

Live News

Get more stuff like this
in your inbox

Subscribe to our mailing list and get interesting stuff and updates to your email inbox.

Thank you for subscribing.

Something went wrong.