General Question

elbanditoroso's avatar

What are the chances that Brian Laundrie, the 'person of interest' in the Gabby Petito murder, is still among the living?

Asked by elbanditoroso (33517points) September 21st, 2021

The news reports from the weekend are that he went into a forest preserve – wilderness area in Western Florida to escape media attention as his girlfriend’s bones were recovered out West.

Do you think he went to the forest to
(a) kill himself and hope his body is never found?

(b) hide there and then escape law enforcement, and then leave and go on the lam?

(c) do some serious soul searching and plan to give up to law enforcement?

My money is that he offed himself.

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36 Answers

Lightlyseared's avatar

I’d guess about 50/50 at this point.

canidmajor's avatar

I don’t think he went there at all. I think he went somewhere else to hide.

rebbel's avatar

He (supposedly) is a narcissist, so my guess is he want to keep on living.
Of course we don’t know how Gabby died (although it looks like he was involved), so maybe he has no real reason to off himself (he might say that she was involved in an unfortunate accident, she died, and he couldn’t help, got in panic (got Moab in his head), and fled to Florida).
Highly unlikely, but possible scenario.
Also, if he kills/killed himself, he’ll be forever remembered as a very big coward, something that I can’t see he would like very much (this all in case he’s the perpetrator).
He seems like a, young, master manipulator; his running off seems to fit in that profile.
He’s keeping the law enforcement busy.
In an effort to buy more time, to come up with new tactics?

He’s a suspect now, by the way.

chyna's avatar

I saw an interview with his neighbor across the street. The car his parents said he took to the preserve on Tuesday, and they said they retrieved on Thursday, had not moved all week according to the neighbor. Probably easy to prove with everyone having camera doorbells now.
I think the parents got him out of the country. I don’t think he would kill himself.

KNOWITALL's avatar

I heard rumors he was found hung in a tree yesterday, but no confirmation of course.
My guess is he’s fled the country or dead.

elbanditoroso's avatar

I’m pretty suspicious of the role of the parents.

Brian L came home from the van trip without his girlfriend and the parents didn’t say/do anything for ten days?

Accomplices after the fact, it sounds like.

chyna's avatar

^Agree and if that’s how it turns out, they need to go to jail.

Forever_Free's avatar

B. disappear.

It hits home so close as my daughter (just turned 21 and bears a close resemblance to Gabby) went on a similar adventure with a friend in July and August and only stayed in National Parks.

His parents are disgusting as is this whole thing.

jca2's avatar

I haven’t read the previous responses.

My guess is that he thinks he is smarter than the law enforcement that is pursuing him. I wonder how the parents knew (supposedly) that the car was outside the forest preserve and so they went to get it. I think the parents are in on it.

I think if he rented a car or took a plane, he’d have to show ID so that would be easy to trace. I’m wondering if he took some buses or trains to another state.

jca2's avatar

Just to add that the FBI is no doubt leaning on the parents and letting them know that if they know something and don’t give it up, they’re going to be charged as aiding and abetting or accomplices or whatever else they can be charged with.

jca2's avatar

I just saw on the news that authorities are resuming their search in the Florida preserve, a day after they called it off. It’s not clear why they’re resuming their search there. They said the search is being concentrated on a certain area of the park.

Nomore_lockout's avatar

b) hide there and then escape law enforcement, and then leave and go on the lam @elbanditoroso He’s a coward scumbag who took his girlfriend on a trip, then killed her. He wouldn’t have the guts to off himself. I hope they catch his ass. And if he did do himself in good riddance. Save taxpayers having to support him in prison the rest of his life.

Dutchess_III's avatar

In hiding. But he’ll be found.

zenvelo's avatar

I lean towrds he is hiding somewhere else. You don’t casually drive back home to Florida after killing your girlfriend, expressing nomoreremorse,and then feel guilty once you are home. The whole driveback is a very cold blooded move.

Tropical_Willie's avatar

I feel his parents are enablers, bet ya his mom’s credit card will show where he is or where he went.

mazingerz88's avatar

Why do people simply assume he killed her? I haven’t been paying attention to this news and I’m curious.

Tropical_Willie's avatar

@mazingerz88

Her body was found beside a road they were on

It was homicide

He used her debit after the time she died to buy $1000 worth of stuff

He came back to Florida in her van and said nothing about where she was

I think it was ten days later her parents declared her a missing person . . .

Oh and he “smokes out” to a nature preserve.

Mommy and Daddy have been subpoenaed

mazingerz88's avatar

^^So there is zero chance she offed herself knowing he will be blamed no matter what?

Tropical_Willie's avatar

It was homicide not suicide.

He was abusive !

jca2's avatar

@mazingerz88: The coroner who did the autopsy ruled it a Homicide.

Brian Laundrie was the last person who saw her alive, so that makes him a person of interest.

There is an arrest warrant out for him for the unauthorized use of her debit card. Then when he’s arrested for that, they’ll question him about her disappearance.

Dutchess_III's avatar

Someone witnessed him slappimg her.
If that’s his go-to reaction over an argument, yeah. He killed her.

Nomore_lockout's avatar

I think he’s as guilty as sin. I’ve always thought that Robert Wagner got away with murdering Natalie Wood as well.

jca2's avatar

I felt that if Brian Laundrie was so concerned about his girlfriend being lost, and wanted to help her be found, he would have gladly gone to the police and discussed where he saw her last, did she have her phone and wallet, and other details. He would want to assist the authorities in finding her. He would be worried sick that his girlfriend was out there lost, vulnerable to criminals, the weather, and all kinds of bad things. The fact that he was not forthcoming with details was a real red flag.

Nomore_lockout's avatar

@jca2 Absolutely. I’d have been on the verge of going bonkers. I’d have stayed in a motel in the area and not leave until I had some kind of closure. I worry when my wife is out and I hear and ambulance or cop car go past with sirens blazing. Always had the same attitude about my pervious girl friends as well. I used to tell them when they went somewhere, if you’re not back in an hour I’ll be calling the cops to find you. (Pre cell phone days). The fact he could even have comtemplated driving all that way home without her, is all the evidence I need.

flutherother's avatar

I’m sure Laundrie killed her and I think he has probably killed himself also. It’s an odd case. They were stopped by the Moab police who separated them for the night. They were engaged to be married I think and the police handled the case very well though obviously with the benefit of hindsight they’d have acted differently.

chyna's avatar

If he is in that swampland hiding, he is in hell on earth. Swamp, snakes, mosquitoes, flies, heat, alligators, lizards and if he had food, it’s probably gone by now.

canidmajor's avatar

Really, what a perfect cover story. The authorities get sent (on the word of his parents) to a place that is really difficult to search. How much time was bought for him by that? His picture is everywhere, but hey! Lots of us are still wearing masks! Geez, this is a dream scenario for a fugitive.

elbanditoroso's avatar

@canidmajor true, but on the assumption that a 21— or 22— year old probably doesn’t have a lot of fake identities set up, and safehouses, ans storage caches, I assume that (if he is alive) he will eventually have to buy food and show himself.

Remember the 1996 Olympic bomber in Atlanta – Eric Rudolph – it took 7 years to catch the guy, who was hiding out in North Carolina – but eventually they did. And Rudolph had planned ahead.

If Laundrie is still alive, he’s not going to last through winter.

canidmajor's avatar

@elbanditoroso How often do you get asked for ID buying a sandwich at 7–11? One really doesn’t need a fake ID to hide effectively, while wearing a mask, for a long time. He may get caught fairly soon, but my point is that the opportunities for escape are much higher now than they were a couple of years ago. But if his parents are complicit, they have have given him enough money to get by for quite a while. I doubt that any of them are criminal masterminds and thinking about the long game.

zenvelo's avatar

I think speculation on him killing himself are plain wrong. This guy had no second thoughts no remorse, no thought about his victim. He’s got everyone looking in swamps, meanwhile he is probably on a beach somewhere, or in the Caribbean or down in Mexico.

Dutchess_III's avatar

And I think his parents know exactly where he is.

jca2's avatar

My guess is that for him to take a plane, he’d need ID so he’s not likely to have taken a plane. He could have taken a bus or train with no ID so he’d be less likely to be caught that way. I’m guessing he took a bus or train to another state and is laying low, but he can’t lay low forever.

Unless the parents had a large quantity of cash in their house, any large bank transactions (withdrawals) would be picked up by the FBI.

KNOWITALL's avatar

Definately on the run. But hey, Dog the Bounty Hunter is helping now, haha!
https://www.fox13news.com/news/dog-the-bounty-hunter-joins-the-search-for-brian-laundrie

chyna's avatar

People have said he and his parents pulled away with a camper before he became a “person of interest “. If so, they could have set him up in the woods somewhere and he could hide out long term.

Nomore_lockout's avatar

@KNOWITALL He fought the Dog and the Dog won? Let’s hope?

KNOWITALL's avatar

@Nomore haha, we’ll see.

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