Everything we know about Gabby Petito's death and Brian Laundrie's disappearance

In July, Gabrielle ‘Gabby’ Petito, a 22-year-old social media influencer, embarked on a trip across the United States with her fiancé in a van they had converted into a camper.

But when her partner Brian Laundrie turned up at his Florida home without her a few months later, and her mum received several “odd” texts before losing contact with her entirely, Petito was reported missing.

On Sunday, police discovered a body matched Petito’s resemblance in a national park in Wyoming. Laundrie was now also missing.

Here’s everything we know about Petito’s disappearance and death, and Laundrie’s subsequent disappearance.

READ MORE:* Gabby Petito's family shares heart-wrenching messages after her body is believed to be found* Gabby Petito case: FBI swarms fiancé Brian Laundrie's Florida home* FBI searches the home of Gabby Petito's fiance, Brian Laundrie* Gabby Petito's body may have been found, FBI says. Search for her fiancé continues* US police scour vast preserve in search of Gabby Petito's fiancé Brian Laundrie

Cross-country road trip begins

At the beginning of July, Petito and Laundrie packed up their van – a white 2012 Ford Transit Connect – and began their journey across the United States visiting a number of national parks.

Their first stop on July 4 was at Monument Rocks in western Kansas.

“There’s no place like the tiny home we built,” Petito captioned a photo on July 5 with the hashtag #vanlife and a tag of Laundrie’s account.

Both Petito and Laundrie shared their adventures on their respective social media accounts which had each amassed hundreds of thousands of followers.

Over the next two months, they shared glimpses into their lives. They camped at the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado, went hiking in Utah’s Zion National Park, drove through Cedar Breaks to Bryce Canyon National Park, and visited Arches National Park.

Both accounts almost mirrored each other with images of them climbing rocks and smiling at the camera. There were just a handful of photos of the couple together.

Police called to domestic incident in Utah

On August 12, police officers in Moab, Utah, were called to a domestic incident involving the couple outside Arches National Park. An officer’s body camera captured the entire interaction.

A witness had phoned 911 after seeing Petito and Laundrie fighting over a phone outside the Moonflower Community Cooperative, a natural food store in Moab, according to a police report obtained by The Washington Post.

The onlooker reportedly saw Petito slap Laundrie during the argument before climbing into the van through the driver-side window. The police report said it was as if Laundrie had “locked her out and she was trying to find a way in”.

Police had located the van on the road, and commented that they were doing some “obscure driving”.

The van swerved and hit the curb – Laundrie said it happened because Petito grabbed the wheel – and they were pulled over.

The officer approached the van to talk to them and found Petito crying, saying they had been fighting and dealing with some “personal issues”. Laundrie was apologetic for hitting the curb, while Petito apologised for distracting him.

In the clip, Laundrie said the couple got into a minor scuffle after he climbed into the van with dirty feet. He had a scratch on his face, which he said Petito inflicted during the scuffle.

Petito was crying to the police officer saying she was apologising to Laundrie for “being so mean” and was cleaning the vehicle. She sat in the back of the police vehicle as the officer asked her what happened and explained he wasn’t going to cite her for domestic violence.

A police report claimed she admitted to slapping Laundrie when she thought he was going to leave her in Moab.

No arrests were made and no charges were laid, but the couple was separated for the night – Petito stayed in the van and Laundrie was put up in a hotel by a domestic assault outreach group.

Back on social media

Around one week after the police incident, the couple uploaded a video to their YouTube account, Nomadic Statik, giving viewers a glimpse into their van adventures.

“Follow our van life journey for some awesome van life ideas, tips, hacks, camping spots, and so many beautiful places to travel!” the caption read.

The account was created in November 2013, but this was the first and only video shared by the couple.

A website had also been made in the same name but was yet publicly available. They had also shared clips of their adventures on TikTok under the username “nomadicstatik”.

Last phone call and strange text

Throughout her trip, Petito had been in regular contact with her mother, Nicole Schmidt.

An unsealed Florida search warrant to search a hard drive from Petito’s van dated September 15 revealed Schmidt and Petito had “many talks” and exchanged “multiple text messages” during the trip.

"During these conversations there appeared to be more and more tension between her and Laundrie," detective Daniel Alix wrote.

Schmidt’s last call with her daughter was on August 25 from Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.

On August 26, she posted for the last time on Instagram. The following day she reportedly told a friend she was going to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

The warrant revealed Schmidt received am “odd” text from Petito on August 27. The text read: “Can you help Stan, I just keep getting his voicemails and missed calls.” Stan was Petito’s grandfather, but Schmidt said she never called him by his first name.

“The mother was concerned that something was wrong with her daughter," read the warrant.

Then, on August 30, Schmidt received another text message from her daughter claiming to be in Yosemite National Park in Northern California. “No signal in Yosemite,” the text read. But Schmidt didn’t believe her daughter sent that message.

"She doesn't believe it was from her daughter," the Petito family’s attorney, Richard B Stafford, said. "Looking back now with all the facts ... she believes it's not her daughter."

Yosemite is located around a 14-hour drive from Grand Teton National Park.

According to the warrant, Petito’s phone was “no longer operational” and had been turned off for about 15 days leading up to the September 15 warrant. She had also stopped posting to social media, something her family pointed out as abnormal behaviour for her, prompting them to become more worried.

Laundrie returns to Florida, Petito reported missing

On September 1, Laundrie, 23, returned to his parents’ home in North Point, Florida, where he lived with Petito, in the van they had been travelling in. A license plate reader confirmed the vehicle entered the city at 10am (local time).

Petito was not with him.

Over the next 10 days, Schmidt and Petito’s family never heard from her and on September 11 reported her missing to the Suffolk County Police Department in New York. Joseph Petito described his daughter’s disappearance as like “drowning with your hands tied behind you”.

"You can't describe it. There's nothing you can do," he said. "You can't control anything."

On September 15, Alix’s warrant was issued to search a hard drive found in the van for information, including emails, texts and all internet browsing history, photos and more to aid the investigation.

Laundrie hadn’t been publicly identified as a person of interest at this time, and his family released a statement, via an attorney.

"On behalf of the Laundrie family, it is our hope that the search for Ms Petito is successful and that Ms Petito is reunited with her family," said Laundrie’s attorney, Steven Bertolino, in a statement.

"On the advice of counsel, the Laundrie family is remaining in the background at this juncture and will have no further comment."

Almost one week later, Laundrie was formally identified as a person of interest, but hadn’t been charged with any crime. Earlier in the month he declined to speak with police, and he hadn’t spoken to the Petito family.

Laundrie goes missing

By September 17, North Port Police were dealing with multiple missing persons investigations after Laundrie disappeared.

Laundrie’s family claimed they last saw the 23-year-old on September 14, three days after Petito was reported missing. They believed he entered the Carlton Reserve, a nearly 25,000 acre nature preserve in Sarasota County in Florida’s southwest.

North Port police spokesman Josh Taylor told CNN the search for Laundrie was "another twist in the story".

Police and the FBI began searching for him with police dogs and drones.

North Port police said: "We understand the community's frustration, we are frustrated too. For six days, the North Port Police Department and the FBI have been pleading with the family to contact investigators regarding Brian's fiancée Gabby Petito ... Friday is the first time they have spoken to investigators in detail."

The Laundrie’s attorney previously asked the family not to speak with investigators.

On September 20, the search was called off with police having exhausted all search avenues in the area.

While all of this was unfolding, the Petito family released a statement via their attorney reminding people that Laundrie wasn’t missing, but hiding.

"All of Gabby's family want the world to know that Brian is not missing, he is hiding. Gabby is missing."

Laundrie’s sister, Cassie Laundrie, spoke publicly on Good Morning America on September 17, saying she hadn’t spoken to her brother since he returned to Florida.

"Obviously, me and my family want Gabby to be found safe," she told ABC. "She's like a sister and my children love her, and all I want is for her to come home safe ... and this to be just a big misunderstanding."

Petito’s body found, Laundrie’s home searched

On September 19, after a two-day search, authorities located a body in Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest, believed to be Petito.

The body recovered resembled Petito’s description, but it was yet to be confirmed.

A cause of death hadn’t yet been determined with an autopsy scheduled for September 21 (US time).

Despite this, North Port Police announced on Twitter Petito’s body had been found.

“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 station tweeted.

"The FBI and our partners extend our heartfelt condolences to Gabby's family and loved ones," the FBI said in a statement.

Petito’s father wrote on Twitter his daughter “touched the world”.

Petito’s younger brother TJ Schmidt, wrote on Instagram: “I don’t even know what to say. I’m at a total loss. My heart is shattered. #justiceforgabby.”

One day after the body was found, FBI agents obtained a warrant and searched Laundrie’s Florida home. Armed officers approached the home and cordoned it off. Laundrie’s parents were put in an unmarked van while agents removed several boxes from the house.

The search was conducted over eight hours with FBI Tampa later announcing it didn’t provide additional information.

Laundrie remained missing.