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Crime

22nd Sep 2021

Gabby Petito: Coroner confirms manner of death as homicide

Charlie Herbert

Further tests will be carried out to determine exactly how she died

A coroner has determined that Gabby Petito’s manner of death was homicide after it was confirmed that human remains found earlier this week near a rural campsite in Jackson, Wyoming were those of the missing 22-year-old.

The FBI confirmed that Teton county coroner, Brent Blue, ruled her manner of death to be homicide, meaning she was killed by another person. However, an exact cause of death has not been disclosed pending final results from the autopsy.

On Sunday (September 19), the FBI said they had found human remains “consistent with the description” of Petito, who was reported missing a week earlier on September 11 by her family. The Guardian reports that her body was found near an undeveloped camping area surrounded by woodland, around 30 miles northeast of Jackson, Wyoming.

In a statement released on Tuesday, the bureau confirmed that the remains were indeed that of Gabby Petito.

“The FBI’s commitment to justice is at the forefront of each and every investigation,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Michael Schneider said. “The FBI and our partners remain dedicated to ensuring anyone responsible for, or complicit in Ms. Petito’s death, is held accountable for their actions.”

Petito, who had gathered a huge following on Instagram posting about her “van life” travels, had gone on a road trip with her fiancé Brian Laundrie in July. However, on September 1, Laundrie returned home to Florida on his own in the van the pair had been travelling in.

After being declared a person of interest by police, Laundrie has since gone missing, having not spoken to the police at all since his return home.

A search is underway for the 23-year-old at a 24,000-acre wilderness reserve in Florida.

The FBI are requesting for anyone with information about Laundrie’s role in Petito’s death to contact them.

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