NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – The family of Gabby Petito was scheduled to hold a press conference on Long Island Tuesday afternoon, as authorities in Florida continued to search for her fiancé Brian Laundrie at a Florida nature reserve, and as Dog the Bounty Hunter said he was following a new tip that alleges Laundrie visited a Florida campground in early September.
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.
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.
“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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