Gabby Petito case: FBI raids Laundrie's home, declare 'crime scene' after 911 fight clip

Police and FBI agents investigating the disappearance of the woman named Gabby Petito who went missing in one of the most high-profile cases in the United States on Monday raided the Florida house of her fiancé Brian Laundrie. The latter was declared a “person of interest” by the FBI. Just one day after the law enforcement recovered a body in Wyoming that matched Gabby Petitio’s description, more than 15 agents from FBI and North Port police units barged into Laundrie family home in North Port Monday morning as they cordoned off the entire house at around 10 am ET. 

FBI Tampa said on Twitter that they were executing a “court-authorized search warrant” relevant to the Gabrielle 'Gabby' Petito investigation,” adding “no further details can be provided since this is an active and ongoing investigation.” Earlier yesterday, the Moab, Utah Police department released chilling footage of Gabby Petito and her fiancé Brian Laundrie reportedly having an altercation near their van on the street, as a witness called authorities to report the “domestic incident”. 

FBI searches computer files, tows away Laundrie's car

At least a dozen law enforcement officers were seen searching the home of the 23-year-old Brian Laundrie’s parents for computer files, as they removed several cardboard boxes and towed away a parked Silver Mustang car driven by Laundrie, neighbours told the on-ground reporters for US TV stations as they recorded the event. Officers shortly were seen escorting the parents from the home to an FBI vehicle for interrogation, discreet footage recorded from the car by an ABC photographer at the scene. They were later escorted into the house. It remains unclear what the officers had asked the Laundrie family. 

[Both parents of Brian Laundrie were taken inside the minivan outside the North Port home.Credit: Twitter/@girlsgonowhere]

Both Laundrie and Petito had been living with his parents at their North Port home before they headed for a cross-country trip on which Gabby Petito mysteriously disappeared. FBI announced on Sunday that they had discovered a body on the edge of Grand Teton National Park that appeared to be of Petito’s although the cause of the death was not established. An autopsy was set for Tuesday. 

Petito’s mom, Nicole Schmidt, has also reported to the cops that she received an “odd text” on Aug. 27 from Petito’s cell phone, which she believes wasn't from her daughter, according to a police affidavit obtained by the agencies. The text read, "Can you help Stan, I just keep getting his voicemails and missed calls," Petito's mom noted in affidavit, revealing that Stan is the name of Petito’s grandfather although the girl never called him by that name. “This was the last communication anyone had with the subject. Her cellphone was no longer operational," the document revealed. 

[This police camera video provided by The Moab Police Department shows Brian Laundrie talking to a police officer after police pulled over the van he was travelling in with his girlfriend, Gabrielle “Gabby” Petito, near the entrance to Arches National Park on Aug. 12. Credit: AP]

“Full forensic identification has not been completed to confirm 100% that we found Gabby, but her family has been notified,” FBI agent Charles Jones told a press briefing streamed on Twitter.

Laundrie’s whereabouts in recent days were unknown as he had gone missing too.North Port Police Department said at a press briefing that they had searched 25,000-acre wildlife refuge and "currently has no plans to conduct a major search of the Carlton Reserve today."  It added, that the investigators had “exhausted all avenues" around the county park near Sarasota before they raided Laundrie's house on Monday. 

In an interview broadcast Monday on Tampa Bay’s TV “Dr. Phil” show father of late Gabby Petito Joseph Petito said in televised statements that his daughter and Laundrie dated for  2 ½ years and had taken a previous road trip to California. “If there were, I would have discouraged going on the trip,” Petito’s dad said. “We called Brian, we called the mom, we called the dad, we called the sister, we called every number that we could find,” Petito said. “No phone calls were picked up, no text messages were returned.” 

[FBI declares Laundrie home 'a crime scene'. Credit: Twitter/@Floydmax11]

The FBI on Monday conducted a search in the Laundrie's home for roughly 10 minutes and the agents were seen bringing folding chairs, a table, and other items into the home as they declared the home “crime scene.” Police were seen in the footage clearing the entire street just a minute before the FBI arrived, announcing on the loudspeaker “you’re in a crime scene.”22-year-old Petito reportedly disappeared after she and her Fiancee Laundrie left in July on a cross-country trek in her white van to visit the national parks in the West and make it to pal’s house in Portland.