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Authorities say they’ve recovered a body “consistent with the description of” the missing Gabby Petito at Bridger-Teton National Forest, adjacent to Grand Teton National Park and Yellowstone National Park, in Wyoming.
There has not been a positive identification yet, according to officials from FBI Denver, the National Park Service and local law enforcement during a news conference this evening in Grand Teton National Park. Other details, including the cause of death, remain to be released. The only specific: the discovery came at a search at the Spread Creek Dispersed Camping Area, which is an undeveloped roadside camping area in the Bridger-Teton National Forest.
Petito, 22, was living the van life and traveling across the United States when she disappeared either in or near Grand Teton National Park in late August. She was traveling with boyfriend Brian Laundrie, and the plan was to chronicle the trip on social media. But she made only one Instagram post regarding her adventures, and since her last contact with her family Laundrie and their van made their way back to North Port, Florida.
Here’s the official statement from the FBI:
The live update has concluded and we will share a recording soon. Our statement is attached & we have no additional comment at this time. #FBIDenver & our partners extend our condolences to Gabby’s family. We thank the public for your generous support of this investigation. pic.twitter.com/kZiSVmJtqv
— FBI Denver (@FBIDenver) September 19, 2021
Since that return, Laundrie–identified as a person of interest in the case–has disappeared. Florida law enforcement embarked on a search of a 25,000-acre Florida nature preserve, the Carlton Reserve in Sarasota County, for Laundrie.
Photo from Gabby Petito (@gabspetito) Instagram account.
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