Brian Laundrie Mom's Letter to Son Reveals Offer to Get Shovel to Help Bury a Body, Gabby Petito’s Family Lawyer Says
A lawyer representing Gabby Petito's parents said Brian Laundrie's mom wrote a letter to her son that included offering to get a shovel and to help bury a body.
During a remote hearing in Sarasota County Circuit Court in Florida on Tuesday, Patrick Reilly, the attorney for Petito's parents, noted that he saw the letter of Laundrie's mom at an FBI regional office," CNN reported.
Reilly said the letter contains plans like helping Laundrie "get out of prison, getting a shovel and some other things." The lawyer further noted that the letter's envelope contained the words "burn after reading."
Reilly said the letter was among the things recovered inside Laundrie's backpack. However, P. Matthew Luka, a defense lawyer representing Laundrie's parents, noted that the letter was irrelevant to the lawsuit and they should not have to produce it.
Luka admitted that the letter exists and is currently in possession of another Laundrie family lawyer. However, the defense lawyer argued that the letter was irrelevant because it "pre-dates" Laundrie and Petito's trip, so it "really doesn't have any relation necessarily to the unfortunate events that unfolded thereafter."
"I know that some of the wording that was used in the letter is unfortunate and might suggest that it has some connection, but it doesn't," Luka added. However, Reilly stressed that the letter was not dated and that a jury should decide whether it was relevant or not.
Reilly said the Petito family attorney wanted to ask Roberta Laundrie about the letter in a deposition. To which Judge Danielle Brewer noted: "I don't see how it wouldn't be relevant to the action."
In his request for additional evidence, Reilly included the note from Laundrie's mom, who allegedly "offered to bring a shovel to help bury the body." The court filing further noted that the FBI released it to Laundrie's family lawyer, Steven Bertolino, on June 24, 2022.
Last March, Petito's parents filed a civil lawsuit against Laundrie's parents for causing emotional distress in relation to their daughter's death. They alleged that Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie knew their son killed Petito, but they even tried to help him flee.
When Petito was missing, they also claimed that Laundrie's parents refused to return calls or texts to Petito's parents, who were desperately looking for their daughter.
Laundrie's parents reportedly answered back in court filings, arguing that they had no duty to Petito's family. The civil lawsuit is scheduled to go to a jury trial in August.
READ NEXT: Brian Laundrie's Parents Have a Shocking Demand
Brian Laundrie's Dad Seen in Public for the First Time Since Gabby Petito's Shocking Selfie Was Released
The request to release the letter written by Brian Laundrie's mom comes a week after a selfie taken by Gabby Petito was released. The photo showed the injuries Petito allegedly suffered at the hands of Laundrie a few minutes before a traffic stop in Utah during their cross-country road trip.
Petito reportedly took the selfie of her bloodied and scratched face two minutes before a passerby called 911 and reported a domestic violence incident between the couple. On Tuesday, Laundrie's dad was publicly seen for the first time since Petito's bloodied face was released last week.
According to the U.S. Sun, Christopher Laundrie was seen wearing a green T-shirt and blue shorts with a tan baseball cap while doing a few errands in North Port, Florida, where he and Roberta Laundrie live.
Laundrie's dad was reportedly seen with hardly no expression as he went to get the mail outside his house before going to Tire Choice & Total Car Care in North Port.
Brian Laundrie and Gabby Petito's Deaths
Gabby Petito disappeared while on a cross-country road trip with Brian Laundrie. The couple was traveling to Oregon when Petito stopped communicating with her family on August 25, 2021, when she was near Grand Teton National Park in Jackson, Wyoming.
Laundrie was named a person of interest by the North Port police after returning home to Florida on September 1, 2021, or 10 days before Petito was reported missing by her family. By September 17, 2021, Laundrie had also gone missing, and the North Porth Police said they, along with the FBI, were searching for him and Petito.
Petito's body was found at the Spread Creek Dispersed Campground near Grand Teton National Park on September 19, 2021. A Teton County, Wyoming coroner said she was strangled to death by a "human being," and the manner of death was a homicide.
On October 20, 2021, Laundrie's skeletal remains were discovered at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Florida. His autopsy report showed that he died of a gunshot wound to the head, and the manner of death was suicide.
In January last year, the FBI revealed that Laundrie confessed to killing Petito in a message left in his notebook. The FBI said they found the notebook, along with a "backpack" and a "revolver," upon further search of the area where Laundrie's remains were discovered.
The FBI noted that its investigation has concluded that Brian Laundrie was the only person responsible for Gabby Petito's "tragic death."
READ MORE: Gabby Petito Murder Movie Draws Ire of Twitterverse
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Rick Martin
WATCH: Report: Attorneys in Gabby Petito Case Battle Over Letter - From CBS New York