Brian Laundrie Death: FBI Says Gun Found Next to His Remains Besides Notebook That Contained His Confession of Killing Gabby Petito

By Adrianna Grant First Posted: Jan 22, 2022 10:27 AM EST

Brian Laundrie's parents will not face any charges in connection with Gabby Petito's death, their attorney said.

Laundrie's family attorney Steven Bertolino told The Independent on Friday that he does not expect Chris and Roberta Laundrie to face any charges.

"To my knowledge there will be no charges," Bertolino said. The lawyer's statement came hours after the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) revealed that Laundrie confessed to killing Petito in a message left in his notebook.

In its final report on the case, the FBI said a review of the notebook revealed written statements by Laundrie claiming responsibility for Petito's death. The FBI investigation has concluded that Laundrie was the only person responsible for Petito's "tragic death."

In a statement, FBI Denver Division Special Agent in Charge Michael Schneider said that while the agency had investigated all logical leads, the investigation immediately focused on the last person believed to see Petito alive, who was Laundrie.

Schneider noted that Laundrie has sent text messages between his and Petito's mobile phones after her death. According to Schneider, the timing and content of these messages were indicative of Laundrie "attempting to deceive law enforcement by giving the impression" that Petito was still alive.

"All logical investigative steps have been concluded in this case. The investigation did not identify any other individuals other than Brian Laundrie directly involved in the tragic death of Gabby Petito. The FBI's primary focus throughout the investigation was to bring justice to Gabby and her family," Schneider said.

The FBI official then thanked the public "for the thousands of tips" provided. He also lauded their law enforcement partners "for their work throughout the investigation."

Petito's family attorney Richard Stafford thanked the FBI for its "diligent and painstaking efforts in this extremely complicated case."

"The quality and quantity of the facts and information collected by the FBI leave no doubt the Brian Laundrie murdered Gabby," Stafford said in a statement.

Bertolino also released a statement after the release of the FBI report. The lawyer said that "this tragedy has caused enormous emotional pain and suffering" to all those who loved Laundrie and Petito.

"We can only hope that with today's closure of the case, each family can begin to heal and move forward and find peace in and with the memories of their children. May Gabby and Brian both rest in peace," Bertolino added.

Brian Laundrie Parents Want to Get Hold of the Notebook Found Near Their Son's Remains

Brian Laundrie's parents had reportedly tried to get possession of the notebook found near their son's remains. FBI agents took the said notebook after they found it during their search at the Carlton Reserve in Florida on the day they discovered Laundrie's remains.

The North Port police and FBI agents found Laundrie's remains at a swampy area in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park on October 20, after a month-long manhunt for him.

Laundrie's parents were present in the park when their son's remains and items were found. Questions surrounding the timeline of events between Laundrie's parents telling authorities they were going to search for their son and the discovery of his belongings have been raised by many people.

They had come under scrutiny for apparent contradictions in what they told authorities about when they last saw Laundrie and allegedly refused to cooperate with Petito's parents when they searched for her.

The elder Laundries never spoke with Petito's parents or told them that their son had come back to Florida. Petito lived at the Florida home with Laundrie for two years before taking off on their cross-country road trip.

FBI Says a Gun Was Found That Likely Belongs to Brian Laundrie

Apart from the notebook, the FBI confirmed on Friday that they also found a "backpack" and a "revolver" upon further search of the area, where Brian Laundrie's remains were found.

Bertolino earlier said that Chris and Roberta Laundrie noticed that one of their guns was missing when they voluntarily surrendered their firearms to authorities. He noted that Laundrie's parents discovered that one handgun was not in its case.

Bertolino said that the FBI and the North Port police were present at the time of the discovery. He noted that the elder Laundries had surrendered their firearms to authorities, except for the one missing, on September 17 - the same day that their son was reported missing.

The lawyer said the elder Laundries have "five or six guns" stored in their Florida home.

At present, although the FBI said they found a gun where Laundrie's remains were found, it was still unclear whether this was the firearm that was missing from the Laundrie family. But with the FBI closing the case, this gun was probably the one used by Laundrie to kill himself.

The partial skeletal remains found at Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park were confirmed to belong to Laundrie after a review of dental records. According to the autopsy report, Laundrie died of a gunshot wound to the head, and the manner of death was suicide.

Gabby Petito disappeared on a cross-country road trip with Brian Laundrie. They were traveling to Oregon when the Petito stopped communicating with her family in Wyoming in late August.

Laundrie was named a person of interest by the North Port police after returning home alone on September 1 or 10 days before Petito was reported missing by her family.

On September 19, Petito's body was found at the Spread Creek Dispersed Campground near Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. A Teton County, Wyoming coroner said Petito was strangled to death by a "human being," and the manner of death was homicide.

Brian Laundrie was never charged in connection with Gabby Petito's murder. But an arrest warrant was issued for him for allegedly using Petito's debit card after her death.