Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie's friends describe them as 'couple goals'
“They were couple goals for me,” are the words that have been used for Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie by their friends and acquaintances as the search operation for the former one is in full swing. Gabby was on a cross-country trip with her 23-year-old boyfriend in a converted van before she vanished. Her last known location was in Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park in late August.
She was reported missing by her mother on September 11 after none of the family members or friends heard from her for a number of days. Besides, Brian returned to his Florida home alone on the same day without Gabby and refused to talk to her family or authorities. He, instead, hired a lawyer to represent him. On Wednesday, September 15, he was named a person of interest in the case by the investigators.
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Nicole Kalanich, an ex-colleague of Gabby and Brian, expressed her shock over the disappearance of the 22-year-old woman. She told Insider that she got to know the two of them in February while working together at a Publix grocery store in North Port, Florida. Kalanich said she did not hang out with them outside the office, but kept in touch via text and FaceTime after they left their jobs a few months later.
Kalanich noted that Gabby and Brian did not discuss their cross-country trip in front of her. She also went on to claim that the pair never “complained” and were “happy and cheerful,” before adding: “They were couple goals for me.”
Sean Leahy, whose son was a classmate of Brian, described him as “quiet” and “a good kid growing up.” He also said, “The one thing that troubles me is that he came home. He didn’t say anything. And he got a lawyer,” before adding, “I don’t want to think the worst of him” and “I’m hoping for the best for her.” Leahy’s son, also called Sean, told Fox News: “All of this stuff coming out, I'm like surprised because every time I ever hung out with Brian, had classes with Brian, he was a really nice kid, a really funny kid. I only met Gabby probably one or two times, three times. She, every time I met her, she was really nice.”
Gabby’s two friends, named Nikki Passannante and Steven Evans, also came forward to talk about her. They said though they never met Brian, their friend seemed happy with him. Evans said, “I actually never got to meet him. When they did get engaged they actually asked me to photograph their wedding, but since then, I never really heard much about him and didn't even know what he looked like up until now.”
Passannante added: “I never got the chance to meet him. They moved to Florida pretty early in their relationship and we're in Long Island and unfortunately, we never got to know a lot. But from what she says and what she posts, they seem to be pretty in love.” When asked of the possibility that Gabby might have gone somewhere on her own, Evans replied, “I wish that could be a possibility, I do, she's not a person that would just go off on her own like that.” He stated, “She's an independent person, but not like that. She wouldn't just fall off the grid and not come in contact with family. She would call her parents every day, sometimes a couple of times a day, so this is just very, very out of the ordinary.”