New details have emerged about phone calls Brian Laundrie made to his parents after murdering his fiancee, Gabby Petito, during the couple’s cross-country road trip in late August 2021.
According to court depositions filed in the ongoing civil lawsuit brought by Petito’s parents, Laundrie placed up to 20 calls to his mom and dad over the course of two days — Aug. 29 and 30, 2021.
The sudden flurry of calls showed a marked difference in his behavior on the trip, as he had only called them six times total over the previous two months of the road trip, the New York Post reported.
New deposition details reveal Brian Laundrie called his parents 20 times in the two days after he killed Gabby Petito. He told them she was “gone” and he “needed a lawyer”. One call was 55 minutes long, and most of the calls were to his mother. pic.twitter.com/997C2RjtQ6
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) January 26, 2024
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Brian Laundrie called parents Roberta and Christopher 20 times in two days after killing Gabby Petito, telling them she was ‘gone’ and that he needed a lawyer, new deposition details reveal https://t.co/4S7Pcgm2YL pic.twitter.com/QOBxNr0daw
— Daily Mail Online (@MailOnline) January 26, 2024
The first call occurred on Aug. 29 and lasted 55 minutes. In it, Laundrie frantically told his father, “Gabby’s gone, I need a lawyer,” the Petito family lawyer Pat Reilly told The Daily Mail.
Reilly asserted that Laundrie was clearly admitting Gabby was dead, while Laundrie’s father, Christopher Laundrie, claimed he thought it could mean Gabby had just temporarily gone off on her own, as she had done previously.
“They refused to acknowledge that that meant Gabby was dead, which flies in the face of logic. If your son calls and he’s frantic and he says she’s gone, I need a lawyer. What other explanation of ‘gone’ could there be?” Reilly told the Daily Mail.
Should Brian Laundrie’s parents come clean on what they knew about the murder?
The Laundries also made additional calls to retain longtime family lawyer Steve Bertolino during this time frame. He would later advise them not to speak publicly.
Gabby Petito’s remains were found weeks later in a Wyoming national forest on Sept. 19. She died by strangulation. The depositions shed light on the Laundries’ mindset and actions after their son confessed to killing Gabby, which her parents allege was intentionally cruel and malicious.
There is also a letter in evidence from Brian’s mother to Brian which reads in part, “‘I just want you to know I will always love you and you will always love me. You are my boy. Nothing can make me stop loving you, nothing will or ever divide us no matter what we do, or where we go or what we say – we will always love each other,” she wrote, according to the Daily Mail.
Gabby Petito’s parents slam Roberta Laundrie for leaking “burn after reading” letter https://t.co/OlmG4blcgy pic.twitter.com/r6Ymmfy4UV
— New York Post (@nypost) May 25, 2023
Despite their pain, the lawyer said Petito’s parents have “sympathy and empathy” for the Laundries, because they understand the pain of losing a child.
There are no answers that can take away the pain both sets of parents are suffering at the loss of their children.
But serious questions remain about whether the Laundries helped their son cover up his crime.
The excuses and justifications made by Brian’s father, Christopher, about the “gone” call ring hollow. As the attorney noted, the only logical interpretation is that Brian was admitting Gabby was dead.
Regardless of their love for their son, if the Laundries were involved in helping their son cover up the murder of Gabby Petito, they should be held accountable.
Petito’s parents’ are resolved to keep searching for full accountability and justice, which is understandable. The lawsuit seems aimed at getting complete answers about what Brian shared with his parents and what they knew about Gabby’s fate.
Financial damages appear secondary.
