Brian Laundrie's Mom Breaks Silence on 'Burn After Reading' Letter to Son in Gabby Petito Case

Brian Laundrie's mom, Roberta Laundrie, has broken her silence on the "burn after reading" letter she wrote to her son, claiming it has nothing to do with Gabby Petito.

In a letter she sent to Sarasota County Circuit Court on Monday, Laundrie's mom said the "quirky" letter was to help repair the relationship between her and her son and was written months before Gabby and Brian embarked on their cross-country road trip in 2021.

"Although I do not know the exact date I wrote the letter, I do know that I wrote it and gave it to Brian before Brian and Gabby left Florida for New York which was on June 2, 2021," Roberta wrote in the letter acquired by WFLA.

The letter she sent to the court was in support of the motion they filed against the "burn after reading" letter becoming public.

Roberta's lawyers filed a motion for a protective order on Monday to block the attempts by Petito's parents to make the letter she wrote to her son admissible as evidence in the civil trial.

The two families are facing an impending jury trial, with the lawyer for Petito's parents, Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt, claiming that the letter made reference to a shovel, burying a body, and helping Brian "to get out of prison."

In her letter, Roberta told the court that she and her son shared a love for books like "The Runaway Bunny" and "Little Bear," even claiming that there was one entitled "Burn After Writing," which was the reason she wrote it on the envelope containing her letter to Brian.

She added that it was also the subject of a joke between her, her son, and Gabby. Roberta maintained that the letter's purpose was to reach out to her son to repair their "strained" relationship.

"Brian and I always had a very open and communicative relationship and in the months prior to the trip our relationship had become strained. Brian and I shared a love of stories and some of the language in the letter was using similar phrases to describe the depth of a mother's love," she noted.

While her letter contains words and phrases that some might think are about the couple, Roberta maintained that there was "no connection" between what she wrote and what happened to her son and Gabby.

"While I used words that seem to have a connection with Brian's actions and his taking of Gabby's life, I never would have fathomed the events that unfolded months later between Brian and Gabby would reflect the words in my letter," Roberta noted.

She said the words in the letter could never be a comment on that tragic event as they were written many months before.

"My words to Brian were meant to convey my love and support for my son through a light-hearted and quirky reminder that my love for him was not diminished and could not be shaken by the miles of separation we would soon be faced with," she noted.

Brian Laundrie's Mom Says Police Did Not Find Letter to Son in His Bag

During a remote hearing last month, Patrick Reilly, the attorney for Gabby Petito's parents, noted that he saw the letter of Brian Laundrie's mom at an FBI regional office," CNN reported.

According to Reilly, the letter contains plans like helping Brian "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 added that the letter was among the things recovered inside Brian's backpack. However, in her letter to the court, Roberta said that "is not true because the FBI had the letter in their possession and questioned' her and her husband, Christopher Laundrie, about it "prior to October 20, 2021, when my husband and I found Brian's remains in the reserve."

P. Matthew Luka, a defense lawyer representing Laundrie's parents, previously said the "burn after reading" letter was irrelevant to the civil 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" Brian and Gabby'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.

In his request for additional evidence, Reilly included the letter from Brian'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 Brian's parents for causing emotional distress in relation to their daughter's death. They alleged that Brian's parents knew their son killed Gabby, but they tried to help him flee.

When Gabby was missing, they also claimed that Brian's parents refused to return calls or texts to Gabby's parents, who were desperately looking for their daughter.

Brian's parents reportedly answered back in court filings, arguing that they had no duty to Gabby's family. The civil lawsuit is scheduled to go to a jury trial in August.

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.

Brian was named a person of interest by the North Port police after returning home to Florida on September 1, 2021, or 10 days before Gabby was reported missing by her family.

By September 17, 2021, Brian had also gone missing, and the North Porth Police said they, along with the FBI, were searching for him and Gabby.

Gabby'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, Brian'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 Brian confessed to killing Gabby 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 Brian'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."

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

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