Gabby Petito: Limited access to Brian Laundrie, her phone data hamper investigation
Authorities looking for Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie revealed that they had limited access to their cell phone tracking data as a manhunt for Laundrie was called off over Florida’s Gulf Coast Saturday night. There has been no sign of Petito's 23-year-old fiance four days after he went missing from his North Point, Florida house.
Meanwhile, there's no clue of 22-year-old Petito either. Specialist search teams are looking for her whereabouts more than 2,300 miles west in the backcountry of Grand Teton National Park. MEAWW previously reported how Gabby last texted her mom that she was at Yosemite, 800 miles away in California on August 30 mentioning that there was a lack of signal. The latest update on September 16 indicated that the van Petito and her boyfriend Brian Laundrie used was last seen at Jenny Lake in Grand Teton national park on August 25, after which she has not been heard of.
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Speaking to ABC 7, North Point police said they require more access to cell phone tracking data for both the missing road trippers. Investigators noted that they are not able to track real-time locations at this point and need to secure search warrants to gain "complete access" to the phones. While it is unclear why the warrants have not been secured as yet, authorities have repeatedly stated in the past week that they do not have evidence of a crime and that Laundrie, although a "person of interest" in the case, is not wanted at this time.
Petito has been missing for over a fortnight after embarking on a cross-country road trip with her boyfriend Laundrie. After setting out for the trip in July, Petito shared a number of photos on her Instagram account. She also provided location information on her posts that included Colorado Springs, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Mystic Hot Springs, and the Arches National Park. However, her last two posts did not have a location tag, which raised concerns among her followers that someone else may be operating her account.
It was later reported that Laundrie, who returned home without her and refused to work with the police, had suddenly disappeared from his home on September 12. His family requested officers with the North Port Police Department to visit their Florida home on September 16, nearly a week into the search for Petito. "His family has reported that they have not seen Brian as of Tuesday," North Port Police Public Information Officer Josh Taylor told the New York Post.
More than 50 North Port police officers with the assistance of the FBI, conducted a vast search in the Carlton Reserve in the Sarasota area on Saturday, Sept 17. “His family says they believe he entered the area earlier this week," North Port police said as they scoured the area of about 25,000 acres. The search for Laundrie was called off until Sunday, September 19 due to darkness.