Brian Laundrie's Death Explained: What Happened To Him After Gabby Petito's Disappearance

Netflix's new crime docuseries, American Murder: Gabby Petito, explores what happened to her fiancé, Brian Christopher Laundrie, after her disappearance and how his eventual death impacted the investigation. The mysterious disappearance of Gabby Petito in August 2021, while traveling across the United States with Laundrie, captured the nation's attention and led to a widespread search that ended in the discovery of her body at Spread Creek in Wyoming. Throughout the docuseries, family and friends of the couple recall the timeline of Gabby Petito's disappearance, her tumultuous relationship with Brian Laundrie, and the FBI and the public's investigation into her death.

Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie began dating in March 2019; a friend of the couple describes their first interaction in the docuseries as "love at first sight." Petito documented their relationship through videos and social media posts, and they became engaged in July 2020 (via Associated Press). However, as time passed, their relationship began to deteriorate, with the couple being reported for a domestic violence incident while on their road trip in Utah, in August 2021. After Petito's disappearance, the FBI turned to Laundrie as the prime suspect; what happened to Laundrie is explored in one of Netflix's scariest true-crime documentaries.

Brian Laundrie Disappeared After Gabby Petito's Body Was Found

Brian Laundrie Was Missing For 37 Days Before His Body Was Found

On August 25, 2021, Gabby Petito posted her last social media post on Instagram (via Irish Star). The last confirmed sighting of Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie together was on August 27, 2021, having dinner at the Merry Piglet restaurant and shopping at Whole Foods in Jackson Hole, Wyoming; witnesses later testified that the couple had gotten into a heated argument at the restaurant (via ABC7). On August 30, Laundrie sent texts from Petito's phone to her mother and attempted to withdraw money from Petito's bank account, arousing suspicion. Laundrie returned to his parents' home in North Port, Florida, on September 1, 2021, without Petito.

After failing to receive any response from Laundrie and his parents, Petito's mother filed an official missing persons' report for her daughter on September 11, 2021. In the Netflix docuseries, Public Information Officer Josh Taylor stated that officers went to the Laundrie family's house; Laundrie's parents, Robert and Chris, are seen on police camera footage, stating that their son was in the house but denied the police any permission to enter the house. In the docuseries, Petito's mother, Nicole Schmidt, said that when she learned that Laundrie's parents had contacted their attorney, she knew "something bad had happened."

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How Old Gabby Petito Was When She Was Killed

Gabby Petito was quite young when she was murdered by her boyfriend, Brian Christopher Laundrie, and her youth only made her death more tragic.

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Gabby Petito's remains were discovered on September 19, 2021, two days after Laundrie was reported missing by his parents. The United States District Court issued an arrest warrant for Laundrie on September 23; his car was found at Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in North Port, Florida, but heavy rain and flooding impacted the search. On October 20, Laundrie's body was found by his parents and authorities in a recently flooded area (via UPI). In total, 37 days had elapsed from the time Laundrie was reported missing until the day his remains were recovered.

Brian Laundrie Took His Own Life Before The Police Found Him

Laundrie's Remains Were Found In October 2021

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Brian Laundries' remains were found at Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park, approximately a mile from where he had parked his car. FBI Special Agent Loretta Bush stated in the Netflix docuseries that "his belongings were still there. His clothes were still there. His shoes were still there. But he had completely decomposed all the way down to the bone," making it difficult to determine the cause of death. A month after his remains were found, on November 23, 2021, it was confirmed that Laundrie had died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head (via The Guardian).

A waterproof bag was located close to Laundrie's remains; Bush revealed that the bag contained photographs of Petito and Laundrie and letters written to Laundrie's family members in a notebook. In the notebook, Laundrie stated that he committed suicide "in the hopes that the animals will tear me apart" and he believed his death "would make some of her family happy." Laundrie's parents were involved in the discovery and recovered their son's bag, which raised suspicions of their involvement in the case; Petito's family later filed a civil lawsuit that was eventually settled against Laudrie's parents, claiming they were aware of their son's actions (via People).

Brian Laundrie's Admission To Killing Gabby Petito Explained

Laundrie Left An Entry In His Notebook Confessing To Killing Gabby Petito

On January 20, 2022, it was announced that Laundrie's notebook contained an entry where he confessed to killing Gabby Petito (via CNBC). In the entry, Laundrie claimed that he killed Petito out of mercy after she suffered an accident and injured herself. He claimed that during her final moments, Petito was "begging for an end to her pain" and he decided to kill her, believing that it was a "merciful" way for her to die. Laundrie's confession also claimed that he chose to commit suicide after realizing that he "couldn't stand to live another day without her."

This was an unexpected tragedy. Rushing back to our car, trying to cross the streams.

I hear a splash and a scream. I can barely see.

I found her breathing barely, gasping... She was freezing cold. The temp had dropped.

When I pulled Gabby out of the water, she couldn't tell me what hurt. While carrying her, she continually made sounds of pain. Laying next to her, she said between violent shakes, gasping in pain, begging for an end to her pain.

I ended her life. I thought it was merciful. But from the moment I decided to take her pain away. I knew I couldn't go on without her.

- Extract from Brian Laundrie's Notebook Discovered October 20, 2021

Laundrie's confession goes against what the coroner revealed what happened to Gabby Petito; the autopsy concluded that Petito had died as a result of manual strangulation and blunt-force injuries to her head and neck. In American Murder: Gabby Petito, it's also revealed that Laundrie wrote about wanting Petito's father and stepfather to confront him and hurt him in retaliation for what happened to her. While Laundrie's version of events has been disputed, investigators have concluded him to be solely responsible for Gabby Petito's death, leading to the case being officially declared closed by authorities in 2022.

Sources: Associated Press, Irish Star, ABC7, UPI, The Guardian, People, CNBC.