NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – The family of Gabby Petito spoke out at a press conference on Long Island Tuesday afternoon as authorities in Florida continued to search for her fiancé Brian Laundrie, and as Dog the Bounty Hunter said he was following a new tip that alleges Laundrie visited a campground south of St. Petersburg, Florida, in early September.
Here's the latest:
9:00 p.m., Sept. 28: NORTH CAROLINA SHERIFF INVESTIGATING STILL-UNFOUNDED CLAIMS OF BRIAN LAUNDRIE SIGHTINGS
A North Carolina sheriff's office is exploring unfounded claims of Brian Laundrie sightings in the area, a local Fox affiliate reported.
"Multiple" Laundrie sightings have been reported in Watuaga County, according to Fox46.
“We were looking into these claims, but nothing has been verified," the Watuga Sheriff's Office told the station in a statement.
The daughter of Duane Chapman, AKA Dog the Bounty Hunter, has been tweeting in recent days about possible Laundrie sightings near the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina, asking for experienced hikers in the area.
Laundrie remains the sole person of interest in Gabby Petito's homicide and a warrant has been issued for his arrest in connection to his actions following her death.
3:35 p.m., Sept. 28: BRIAN LAUNDRIE AND PARENTS VISITED FL CAMPGROUNDS IN SEPTEMBER, LAWYER SAYS
Brian Laundrie and his parents checked into a Florida campground in early September, their family’s lawyer confirmed to Jossie Carbonare, a local reporter for an ABC affiliate.
The confirmation comes after newly released records showed Roberta Laundrie had visited Ft. De Soto Park between Sept. 6 and Sept. 8, with the family lawyer quickly noting her husband, Chris, and Brian were both also on the trip.
The record release and subsequent confirmation supported a tip Duane Champman, AKA Dog the Bounty Hunter, said he received that the Laundrie family had visited the area twice after Brian returned alone from his cross-country trip with Petito.
Chapman had told Fox News that he had received a tip that claims Brian Laundrie and his parents visited the 1,130-acre Fort De Soto Park twice—from Sept. 1 to 3 and from Sept. 6 to 8.
Chapman claimed he had a tip that only two people left from the family’s second trip.
Steven Bertolino, the Laundrie's lawyer, issued a statement Tuesday calling Chapman’s tip “nothing but baloney” and added the family only made one trip — from Sept. 6 to 7 — and left together.
“[D]og doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” Bertolino said. “The Laundries had reservations at the campground for September 1 to 3. They canceled those reservations and did not go to that park that weekend although dog says they did.”
Bertolino added that when the family did visit the grounds they “all left together despite the claims of others.”
The weekend that followed the Ft. De Soto Park visit, Bertolino said the family went to “other places on two different days and the FBI is aware of this,” which he claims proves that Brian wasn't left behind.
“So Brian obviously returned home after camping and what that [D]og is spewing is nothing but baloney,” Bertolino added.
1:20 p.m., Sept. 28: PETITO/SCHMIDT FAMILY SHOW OFF NEW TATTOOS HONORING GABBY, SEEK ‘JUSTICE FOR HER HOMICIDE’
The Petito and Schmidt family held a press conference at their lawyer’s office on Long Island Tuesday afternoon, where they showed off new tattoos they got Monday night honoring Gabby and said they were seeking “justice for her homicide” while urging Brian Laundrie to “turn yourself in.”
“These were tattoos that Gabby designed herself—she was an artist,” her stepfather Jim Schmidt said as he and Petito’s other three parents showed off their tattoos.
“I wanted to have her with me all the time, so I feel that this helps that,” her mother Nichole Schmidt said.
Her father, Joe Petito, and stepmother, Tara Petito, also got the tattoos, which read, “Let It Be” and “Believe.”
During the press conference at attorney Richard Stafford’s Bohemia office, the four also talked about the new Gabby Petito Foundation they’re launching to help find missing people around the world, saying, "everyone deserves the same type of awareness."
“We need positive stuff to come from the tragedy that happened, we can’t let her name be taken in vain,” Joe Petito said. “We need positive stuff. So anything we can do to bring that up and help people that’s what we want to do.”
Petito’s family thanked law enforcement, social media users and the news media for their help in “bringing her home.” Nichole Schmidt specifically thanked Det. Tracey Barry of the Suffolk County Police Department for her early efforts in the case.
“She got the ball rolling, she’s my guardian angel, and I thank her the most,” Schmidt said.
Asked what justice for Gabby will look like, Stafford said, “Justice for Gabby is that we see justice for her homicide.”
“The FBI has classified her death a homicide. They are the premiere agency in the country. They are investigating her death, and we believe through their investigation we will have justice for Gabby,” he said.
Stafford also addressed the ongoing search for Brian Laundrie and his family’s “silence.”
“The Laundries did not help us find Gabby, they’re sure not going to help us find Brian,” Stafford said. “For Brian, we’re asking you to turn yourself in to the FBI or the nearest law enforcement agency.”
Asked if the Petito and Schmidt family believed the Laundrie family’s statement Monday denying that they had “assisted Brian in leaving the family home,” Stafford said “that’s for the FBI to investigate.”
“I know they’re investigating all avenues in this case,” he said, adding that the family is “100% happy with the FBI.”
“They’ve been with us at every single step of the way,” he said.
Stepfather Jim Schmidt also discussed the difficulty of returning to Long Island without Petito’s remains—which are still with the FBI—ahead of a memorial service last Sunday.
“It was a very tough decision to have to make to come home, but we felt it was important to come home so we could mourn her and celebrate her life and be with our family and friends,” Schmidt said. “And when they’re ready to release her, we will be bringing her home.”
12:45 p.m., Sept. 28: PETITO FAMILY SET TO HOLD 1 P.M. PRESS CONFERENCE ON LONG ISLAND
The Petito and Schmidt family are set to hold a 1 p.m. press conference from the Bohemia, New York, office of their lawyer, Richard Stafford.
It's unclear what the family will speak about at the briefing. They may address the new Gabby Petito Foundation and possibly the ongoing search for Brian Laundrie.
The press conference comes two days after a memorial service was held for Petito at a funeral home in Holbrook.
10 a.m., Sept. 28: SHERIFF'S OFFICE SAYS THERE'S NO ONGOING SEARCH AT FORT DE SOTO PARK
No ongoing search is currently underway for Brian Laundrie at Florida's Fort De Soto Park, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office told Fox News.
Dog the Bounty Hunter said he was pursuing a tip that alleges Laundrie visited a campground there earlier this month.
The sheriff's office told News Nation Now correspondent Brian Entin that they're not conducting an investigation there and are not aware of any confirmed Laundrie sightings.
7 a.m., Sept. 28: FAMILY OF GABBY PETITO TO HOLD NY PRESS CONFERNCE
The family of Gabby Petito plans to hold a news conference Tuesday afternoon from their lawyer's Long Island office, the family said.
The Petito and Schmidt family will hold the press conference from lawyer Richard Stafford’s office in Bohemia at 1 p.m.
The press conference will come two days after a memorial service was held for Petito at a funeral home in Holbrook on Sunday.
Petito's parents may speak about the new Gabby Petito Foundation, which will help to find missing people across the country. They may also address the search for Brian Laundrie, who has been missing for weeks after returning to the Laundrie house in Florida without Petito.
6:30 a.m., Sept. 28: DOG THE BOUNTY HUNTER PURSUES TIP THAT BRIAN LAUNDRIE SPENT TIME AT FLORIDA CAMPGROUND
Duane Chapman, known as “Dog the Bounty Hunter,” is pursuing a tip that alleges Brian Laundrie and his parents went to a Florida campground south of St. Petersburg in early September, before Gabby Petito was officially declared missing on Sept. 11.
The lead comes as authorities continue to scour the swampy, 25,000-acre Carlton Reserve north of the Laundrie’s home in North Port—though police said Monday that the days-long search there would be “scaled back and targeted based on intelligence.”
Chapman told Fox News that he has received over 1,000 tips since joining the search over the weekend. Among them was a tip that claims Brian Laundrie and his parents, Chris and Roberta, visited the 1,130-acre Fort De Soto Park twice—from Sept. 1 to 3 and from Sept. 6 to 8. The park is made up of five interconnected keys with mangroves and wetlands.
“They were registered, went through the gate. They’re on camera. They were here,” Chapman said. “We think at least if he’s not here right now, we are sure he was caught on camera as he went in the gate — that he was here for sure. Not over in the swamp.”
“Allegedly, what we’re hearing, is two people left on the 8th,” Chapman said. “Three people came in on the 6th, and two people left on the 8th. I think he’s been here for sure.”
According to Fox News, one of its reporters overheard a worker at the park say investigators had looked over surveillance video there. Chapman told News Nation Now correspondent Brian Entin that he hasn't seen the alleged video but that he has alerted authorities to the tip.
Fort De Soto Park is about 70 miles northwest of North Port. Chapman described the conditions there as "much easier" than the Carlton Reserve. Law enforcement haven’t said they’re searching the park.
On Monday, the Laundrie family attorney said, “The speculation by the public and some in the press that the parents assisted Brian in leaving the family home or in avoiding arrest on a warrant that was issued after Brian had already been missing for several days is just wrong.”
Laundrie’s parents have not been accused of a crime.
11 p.m., Sept. 27: UTAH POLICE CHIEF TAKES LEAVE OF ABSENCE AMID PROBE
Moab Police Chief Bret Edge is on a leave of absence that began Monday, just days after city officials announced that there will be a probe into a “possible breach of police department policy” when officers responded to the "domestic dispute" between Petito and Laundrie.
Edge made his request for a leave of absence under the Family Medical Leave Act, according to city of Moab communications director Lisa Church.
Church added, "The city cannot provide any additional details or comments."
It is unclear how long Edge will be on leave and who will replace him.
7 p.m., Sept. 27: PETITO FAMILY PLANS NEWS CONFERENCE, LAUNDRIE PARENTS SLAM RUMORS THAT THEY HELPED HIM FLEE
The family of Gabby Petito plans to hold a news conference at 1 p.m. Tuesday from their lawyer's Long Island office, the family announced Monday.
Meanwhile, the lawyer representing Brian Laundrie's parents slammed unfounded rumors that they helped their missing son flee as media attention swelled around Petito's disappearance.
"Chris and Roberta Laundrie do not know where Brian is. They are concerned about Brian and hope the FBI can locate him," the lawyer said in a statement. "The speculation by the public and some in the press that the parents assisted Brian in leaving the family home or in avoiding arrest on a warrant that was issued after Brian had already been missing for several days is just wrong."
Laundrie disappeared on Sept. 14 after allegedly telling his parents that he was traveling to the Carlton Reserve. Petito's family reported her missing three days prior.
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