NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — The FBI swarmed the Florida home of Gabby Petito's fiancé, Brian Laundrie, on Monday morning—a day after a body believed to be Petito's was found near a Wyoming camp site, and hours after police in Florida said they didn't plan to continue a "major search" of a nature preserve for Laundrie, who was last seen Tuesday, according to his parents.
Here's the latest:
10:00 p.m., Sept. 20: LAUNDRIE FAMILY ATTORNEY CANCELS TUESDAY NEWS CONFERENCE
The lawyer representing Gabby Petito's fiancé, Brian Laundrie, has canceled his news conference scheduled for Tuesday at 1 p.m. in New York after speaking with the FBI on Monday night.
"As per my conversation with the FBI this evening there will be no press conference tomorrow," attorney Steven Bertolino said in a statement.
8:30 p.m., Sept. 20: SEARCH WARRANT REVEALS DETAILS OF GABBY PETITO'S LAST MESSAGE TO MOTHER
A newly released search warrant has revealed previously unknown details about the final messages sent from Gabby Petito's phone to her mother.
The warrant, approved by Florida's 12th Judicial Circuit court in Sarasota County, allows police to search an external hard drive recovered from the white Ford Transit Petito and her fiancé used for their cross-country trip this summer.
Authorities requesting the warrant including new information the last message from Petito's phone on Aug. 27 — a message Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, said included "odd" language about her grandfather.
"Can you help Stan, I just keep getting his voicemails and missed calls," read the message to Schmidt from Petito's phone.
"Stan" was a reference to Petito's grandfather, but Schmidt told police Petito never calls him by that name, according to the warrant.
That message led Schmidt to believe there was something wrong with her daughter. Petito's phone was turned off for the last time that same day, according to the warrant.
6:20 p.m., Sept. 20: FBI CONCLUDES SEARCH OF LAUNDRIE HOME
The FBI concluded it's day-long search of the home of Brian Laundrie's parents Monday afternoon, the agency announced on Twitter at 6:20 p.m.
"The #FBI search at the Laundrie residence in North Port has concluded. No further details since this is an ongoing investigation," the agency wrote.
"We continue to ask for the public’s assistance in the #GabbyPetito investigation. 1-800-CALL FBI or http://tips.fbi.gov. @FBIDenver," the agency added.
4:30 p.m., Sept. 20: FBI AGENTS LEAVE LAUNDRIE HOME WITH MULTIPLE ITEMS
FBI agents left the Florida home of Brian Laundrie's parents Monday with multiple boxes and documents, local outlets reported.
Laundrie is still missing, and viewed as a "person of interest" in Gabby Petito's case, according to police.
Agents removed Laundrie's parents from the home as they executed their search warrant Monday beginning around 10 a.m., CNN reported. The parents were then reportedly brought back inside and questioned, according to the station.
Agents could be seen on live footage leaving the home with multiple items in cardboard boxes. The agency also towed a Ford Mustang from the property.
3:30 p.m., Sept. 20: REPORTED BRIAN LAUNDRIE SIGHTINGS IN ALABAMA ARE FALSE, OFFICIALS SAY
Internet rumors that Brian Laundrie was spott in Mobile, Alabama, turned out to be false, according to local officials.
The office of Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson told the local NBC affiliate that the reports of Laundrie's presence in the county were unfounded, following a local police investigation.
A body discovered in a Mobile dumpster Monday also had no connection to Laundrie, police told the local Spectrum affiliate.
2:50 p.m., Sept. 20: MUSTANG TOWED AWAY FROM LAUNDRIE HOME
A silver Mustang was towed away from the Laundries' home, reportedly by the FBI.
Brian Laundrie is said to have driven the vehicle to the swampy Carlton Reserve on Tuesday before abandoning it. His parents reported him missing Friday.
The Laundrie family attorney, Steven Bertolino, told the New York Post that the family found the Mustang at the reserve after Brian Laundrie failed to return home. Bertolino said the family found a note from police asking for the Mustang to be removed, but they left the vehicle parked there in the hopes that he'd return to it.
1:55 p.m., Sept. 20: LAUNDRIE FAMILY ATTORNEY TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE TUESDAY AFTERNOON
The attorney for the Laundrie family, Steven Bertolino, will hold a press conference in Suffolk County at 1 p.m. Tuesday, his office said. It will be held at the Hyatt Regency Long Island in Hauppauge.
1:30 p.m., Sept. 20: 911 CALL REPORTING DOMESTIC INCIDENT BETWEEN PETITO, LAUNDRIE IN UTAH IS RELEASED
The 911 call in which a witness reported a domestic incident between Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie in Moab, Utah, on Aug. 12 was obtained by Fox News. Hour-long bodycam video of officers responding to the call was released last week.
In the 911 call, a man previously identified by police as "Christopher" says he saw a man "slapping" a woman outside the Moonflower co-op in Moab.
"We drove by them, the gentleman was slapping the girl," the caller says. "And then we stopped, they ran up and down the sidewalk, he proceeded to hit her, hop into the car, and they drove off."
After pulling the couple over outside Arches National Park, police ultimately determined that Petito was the aggressor in the incident but declined to charge her, instead separating the two of them for the night.
12:30 p.m., Sept. 20: POLICE BRING POSSIBLE EVIDENCE BOXES TO LAUNDRIE HOME
Police were spotted dropping off collapsed cardboard boxes, potentially for evidence, at the North Port, Florida, home of Brian Laundrie's parents. A short time earlier, officers were seen arriving with what appeared to be snacks and a cooler as Laundrie's parents remained inside of the house, according to Fox News.
11:30 a.m., Sept. 20: FORENSIC PATHOLOGIST TO HELP WITH AUTOPSY ON BODY FOUND IN WYOMING
A forensic pathologist from Sheridan, Wyoming, will assist the Teton County Coroner’s Office as it conducts an autopsy Tuesday on a body believed to be that of Gabby Petito, the office told Fox News. Authorities and Petito's family have indicated that they believe the body found near a Spread Creek camp site is Petito's, but a full forensic identification still needs to be completed. The cause of death has not yet been determined.
11:00 a.m., Sept. 20: LAUNDRIES BACK INSIDE THEIR HOME AS FBI EXECUTES SEARCH WARRANT
Brian Laundrie's parents, who were seen being briefly placed in a police van during an FBI search of their home, re-entered the house.
10:45 a.m., Sept. 20: LAUNDRIE LAWYER HAS 'NO COMMENT' ON FBI SEARCH
The lawyer for the Laundries, Steven Bertolino, told Fox News that he had "no comment" as the FBI executed a search warrant at their home. Bertolino also told local station WTSP that he had no response.
10:20 a.m., Sept. 20: FBI SAYS IT'S EXECUTING 'COURT-AUTHORIZED SEARCH WARRANT' AT LAUNDRIE HOME
FBI Tampa tweeted that it's "executing a court-authorized search warrant today at the Laundrie residence in North Port, FL relevant to the Gabrielle 'Gabby' Petito investigation. No further details can be provided since this is an active and ongoing investigation."
Images appeared to show Brian Laundrie's parents being removed from the home by law enforcement, while video shows FBI agents carrying what appear to be chairs into the house.
10:00 a.m., Sept. 20: FBI AT FLORIDA HOME OF BRIAN LAUNDRIE'S PARENTS (WATCH LIVE ABOVE)
The FBI descended on the home of Brian Laundrie's' parents, Chris and Roberta, in North Port, Florida, as officers put up police tape around the house.
The FBI announced a "search warrant" before they went inside the home, according to Fox News. Police reportedly told people the area is a "crime scene."
8:30 a.m., Sept. 20: POLICE SAY NO PLANS FOR 'MAJOR SEARCH' IN FLORIDA RESERVE ON MONDAY
North Port Police in Florida told multiple news outlets Monday morning that they don't plan to conduct a major search of the swampy Florida reserve where they'd been looking for Petito's boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, after he disappeared last week.
"The North Port Police Department currently has no plans to conduct a major search of the Carlton Reserve today," the department said. "All media interviews from our Department are on hold until further notice."
North Port Police public information officer Josh Taylor clarified: "At this time, we currently believe we have exhausted all avenues in searching of the grounds there. Law enforcement agencies continue to search for Brian Laundrie."
The search in Florida has involved multiple law enforcement agencies. Laundrie's parents had told police that they believed their son traveled to the reserve last Tuesday before they reported him missing days later on Friday. Laundrie is a person of interest in the case but has not been accused of a crime.
7:15 a.m., Sept. 20: PETITO’S BROTHER CALLS FOR JUSTICE
Petito’s brother, TJ Schmidt, posted a photo of his sister to Instagram overnight, writing, “I don’t even know what to say. I’m at a total loss. My heart is shattered #justiceforgabby.”
Her uncle, Mike Schmidt, also said in a Facebook post overnight that he has "no words right now as I am numb." He wrote, "Our Gabby was a beautiful, kind, caring young woman with so much ahead of her. We are heartbroken."
7:00 a.m., Sept. 20: AUTOPSY SCHEDULED IN WYOMING
A body believed to be that of Gabby Petito will undergo an autopsy on Tuesday, the Teton County Coroner's Office told Fox News on Monday.
The body was discovered Sunday at the Spread Creek dispersed campsite in Bridger-Teton National Forest, near Grand Teton National Park.
At a press conference Sunday, FBI agent Charles Jones said, “human remains were discovered consistent with the description of Gabrielle ‘Gabby’ Petito.”
The body was found not far from where travel bloggers recorded what they believe to be Petito’s Ford Transit van at the Spread Creek camp area around Aug. 27. Petito’s family said on Facebook that the FBI is aware of the video.
6:00 p.m., Sept. 19: PETITO/SCHMIDT AND LAUNDRIE FAMILIES RELEASE SEPARATE STATEMENTS AFTER BODY FOUND
Richard Stafford, a lawyer for the Schmidt and Petito family, released a statement late Sunday, after a body believed to be Petito’s was found in Wyoming.
“Due to today's developments, we are asking the press and news media to have some decorum and sensitivity for Gabby's family and allow them to grieve. I will be in contact with you when Gabby's family is ready to make a public statement,” Stafford wrote in part.
Steven Bertolino, the lawyer for the Laundrie family, also released a statement. “The news about Gabby Petito is heartbreaking,” he said. “The Laundrie family prays for Gabby and her family.”
Petito’s father, Joe Petito, posted a message to Twitter about his daughter, which included a “heartbroken” emoji. “She touched the world,” he wrote along with a photo of her.
The North Port Police Department, which is leading the investigation, also released a statement. “Saddened and heartbroken to learn that Gabby has been found deceased. Our focus from the start, along with the FBI, and national partners, has been to bring her home. We will continue to work with the FBI in the search for more answers,” the department wrote.
5:40 p.m., Sept. 19: POLICE WRAP UP ANOTHER DAY OF SEARCHING FOR BRIAN LAUNDRIE IN FLORIDA RESERVE
Police concluded another day of searching the Carlton Reserve without finding Brian Laundrie on Sunday. His parents told authorities they believe he traveled to the 24,500-acre park on Tuesday before they reported him missing days later on Friday.
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