Is Brian Laundrie in Ohio? Cops search Cambridge motel after 2 men 'spot' him near it
CAMBRIDGE, OHIO: Brian Laundrie sightings have become a regular thing in the past few weeks, following the disappearance of the 23-year-old man - a person of interest in the death of his partner Gabrielle ‘Gabby’ Petito. Last weekend, he was reportedly seen in a small Ohio town. Officers from multiple law enforcement agencies converged on a Southgate Parkway motel in Cambridge on Saturday, October 2, after two men reported seeing Laundrie walk past them.
Cambridge lies in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in southeastern Ohio in Guernsey County. A resilient theory from internet sleuths since his disappearance on September 14 suggests that Laundrie was on the Appalachian Trail. However, again on Saturday, a Florida man hiking the Appalachian Trail claimed he saw Laundrie driving in a white pickup truck around 12:30 am ET in Tennessee near the North Carolina border.
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As per a local report, in the small Ohio town, Cambridge police officers, Guernsey County sheriff's deputies, and Central Ohio Drug Enforcement Task Force agents responded to Quality Inn just after the sighting was reported. An investigation was conducted in conjunction with the FBI but Laundrie was not located on the grounds. "We checked several rooms of interest after ruling out other rooms throughout our investigation," said Cambridge Police Detective Dustin Gerdau.
Per the police, the two men contacted authorities at approximately 10:40 am to report a man that they believed to be Laundrie had walked past them while they were performing maintenance work outside. Both men said that they had a good look at the man and both believed it was Laundrie. Gerdau then reportedly contacted the local FBI office, and eight to ten officers responded to search the grounds and rooms for Laundrie. The police report stated, "It was determined that if Laundrie was at the motel, he was no longer there."
Tennessee, North Carolina, Ohio, Cuba, Mexico, and even Canada -- the theories of where Laundrie is -- or is at least headed toward -- are aplenty. Despite the number of sightings of the man, Laundrie remains elusive. And time and environmental factors are only further complicating the search for Laundrie, experts say.
Cassie Laundrie, his sister, said in an exclusive interview with ABC's ‘Good Morning America’ that aired on October 5, "No, I do not know where Brian is. ... I'd turn him in.” Cassie said, "I worry about him. I hope he's OK, and then I am angry and don't know what to think. ... I would tell my brother to just come forward and get us out of this horrible mess.”
Laundrie's parents told investigators they last saw him leaving their North Port, Florida, home on September 14 with a backpack, and told them he said he was going to the nearby 25,000-acre Carlton Reserve. Investigators have since spent days searching for Laundrie at the massive swampy forest reserve.
Cassie also told ABC her brother had previously taken trips for up to five days on the Appalachian Trail. "I'd say Brian is a mediocre survivalist. It wouldn't surprise me if he could last out there a very long time. But also, I don't think anything would surprise me at this point," she told ABC. "If the FBI finds him in Timbuktu, I'd be like, 'Alright, well, that's where he was.' I've got nothing.” She added, "I hope my brother is alive because I want answers just as much as everybody else.”