Cassie Laundrie: Gabby Petito's dad slams Brian Laundrie's sister's 'loving' statement
Even as missing travel vlogger Gabby Petito's boyfriend Brian Laundrie refuses to cooperate with investigators who are trying to locate her, his sister has spoken up about what she thought of Petito.
Petito went missing on a cross-country road trip to visit national parks with her boyfriend. Days after Laundrie came back, driving the couple's van sans Petito, who was an aspiring YouTuber, Cassie Laundrie, Brian Laundrie’s sister, has broken her silence. “Obviously, me and my family want Gabby to be found safe,” Cassie told ABC’s 'Good Morning America' in a clip. “She’s like a sister and my children love her, and all I want is for her to come home safe and found and this to be just a big misunderstanding.”
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Gabby’s father Joe Petito slammed Cassie in an interview with NewsNation’s Ashleigh Banfield, commenting that the remarks “made a lot of sense.” “If that’s that family’s version of love, to just ignore and not care that someone’s gone and people are looking for them and entire country's looking for them, I mean, that explains how we got to where we are today. Because I mean, look at their version of what they call love," Joe said.
Petito family's emotional letter
Brian has been named a “person of interest” in the Gabby Petito case by the North Port police in Florida. He has not been charged. Cassie's interview came after Petito's family penned an emotional letter begging the Laundries to help them find their missing daughter. The letter also suggested that the family might have information about where their daughter is and withholding the same.
Letter from Gabby Petito’s family to parents of her fiancé Brian Laundrie. pic.twitter.com/yPqy2MCixc
— Kristin Thorne (@KristinThorne) September 16, 2021
The letter was read by Petito's family lawyer Richard Stafford in a press conference held in Long Island. "We understand you are going through a difficult time and your instinct to protect your son is strong. We ask you to put yourselves in our shoes. We haven't been able to sleep or eat and our lives are falling apart. As a parent, how can you let us go through this pain and not help us? As a parent, how could you put Gabby's younger brothers and sisters through this?"
The young couple was engaged to be married and the letter suggested the Laundries were "so happy" by the union and the fact that Gabby and Brian planned to spend their lives together.
Bodycam footage
In the newly-released bodycam video from August 12, an emotional Gabby is seen crying as she told officers the couple "have been fighting all morning" and admitting that she slapped him. She also admitted that she suffers from OCD and anxiety. The couple maintained that Gabby was stressed because of the YouTube blog they were working on to document the cross-country trip, which ultimately led her to her disappearance.
Brian was seen with scratches on his face and arm at the time. He explained to an officer that they were caused when Gabby "was trying to get the keys from me" and "hit me with her phone." Gabby made a grabbing motion on her chin when an officer asked if her boyfriend hit her. "I guess," she added. Brian, on the other hand, admitted he "pushed her" during the altercation. The officers determined that Gabby was "the primary aggressor" and said they were going to separate the couple for the night.