The body of Gabby Petito, a 22-year-old influencer, was found in northern Wyoming on September 19, a death which the coroner ruled as a homicide. The coroner believes that she died on September 11. 

The FBI is currently looking for her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, as a person of interest. Petito had been on a cross-country trip with Laundrie before she was reported missing.

While on a road trip, the police department of Moab, Utah pulled over the couple based on reports of domestic violence. The police officers on the scene decided that Petito was the reported aggressor although the citizen’s report states that Laundrie was slapping or hitting Petito. The dispatcher said, “RP [reporting party] states seeing a male hit a female, domestic.” The Moab Police Department identified Petito as the aggressor because the officers spotted scratches on Laundrie’s face. 

Laundrie returned home in Petito’s van to his parent’s house in North Port, Florida without Petito, which makes him a suspect in her case. On September 6, Laundrie and his family went camping and were away until September 8. 

On September 11, Petito was officially reported missing. Her parents had tried to make contact with Laundrie’s family but were unable to reach any of them. Once the Laundrie family had returned home from their camping trip, the FBI came to their house to search for any evidence they could use in order to find Petito. 

On September 17, Laundrie’s family reported him missing, stating that they haven’t seen him since September 14. Officials believe that he disappeared somewhere around the Carlton Reserve in Venice, Florida.

On Septhember 23, the US District Court of Wyoming has issued a federal arrest warrant against Brian Laundrie, stating that he illegally used a debit card and pin that does not belong to him;  spending around $1,000. This arrest warrant will allow the authorities to arrest Laundrie if they find him. Petito’s family hopes that other missing persons’ cases get the same attention that their daughter’s case did.

The Petito case has recently drawn even more attention as numerous critics claims that the media has given an inordinate amount of attention to a missing white woman, when a number of missing people of color (including black, Latino and indigenous) fail to make headlines.