Brian Laundrie’s parents SLAMMED for calling cops on Dog the Bounty Hunter but not when Gabby Petito was missing
BRIAN Landrie’s parents have been slammed for immediately calling 911 on Dog the Bounty Hunter after he knocked on their door – but waiting days to report their wanted son missing to the FBI.
Chris and Roberta Laundrie, of North Point, Florida, have been dubbed the “the most hated parents in America” on social media as their son Brian, 23, remains missing.
Brian Laundrie was the fiance of 22-year-old vlogger Gabby Petito, whose remains were found by investigators at a Wyoming campsite on September 19.
He is not currently considered a suspect in her murder but has been cited as a person of interest. He is also wanted on a warrant for alleged bank fraud after running up $1,000 in charges on a debit card that’s believed to have belonged to Gabby.
The couple was around two months into their planned four-month cross-country road trip touring the US’ national parks before Gabby vanished sometime around August 27.
Brian quietly returned home to Florida alone on September 1, failing to alert police or Gabby’s family that she was missing.
He reportedly acted “without a care in the world” upon his return, neighbors said, mowing the front yard and enjoying idyllic bike rides with his mom.
SCRUTINY BUILDS
As reported by The Sun on Tuesday, Brian even went camping with his parents on September 6 at Fort De Soto Park.
In a statement issued through their attorney, Chris and Roberta confirmed they had stayed at the camp with Brian until September 8, but denied claims they left their son at the park.
Gabby was eventually reported missing by her mother in New York on September 11. That came after 10 days of allegedly being stonewalled by Brian and his parents about where her daughter was, she said.
Then, on September 14, Brian allegedly vanished after telling his parents he was going hiking at a nature reserve in Sarasota.
But they didn’t report Brian missing until three days later when police showed up at their home.
Read our Brian Laundrie live blog for the very latest news and updates…
Most read in The Sun
During that time, the pair said they drove to the 25,000-acre reserve looking for Brian. They claim to have found no trace of him but stumbled across his car and drove it home.
With Brian still at large, famed TV investigator Dog the Bounty Hunter joined the search to find him last week.
Dog, real name Duane Chapman, attempted to knock on the family’s front door on Monday, however, the couple called 911 on him.
‘THEY SHOULD BE SUSPECTS’
While Dog called it a “shame” they’d rather call the cops that open the door to him, social media users have blasted the pair for “obstructing” the investigation into Gabby’s murder and called for them to be treated as suspects in the case.
“Laundrie’s mother called 911 on ‘Dog’ the bounty hunter but waited DAYS to call 911 about her missing son,” one user tweeted, along with a facepalm emoji.
Responding to that tweet, a second user chimed in: “Son returns home unexpectedly from a long trip. No girlfriend with him. Mom and Dad don’t ask ‘where is Gabby?’ Yeah right.”
In a separate post, one woman wrote: “IF my child is missing and I had a bunch of reporters sitting on my front lawn, and IF I had nothing to hide, I would be leaving EVERY DAY looking for my kid with reporters trailing my ass. More eyes the better, right? … Most hated parents!”
‘MOST HATED PARENTS IN US’
Another post read: “Good night to everyone except the Laundrie family, the most hated parents in the country.”
The user continued that they were “praying” that they’d wake up to the news that Brian Laundrie had been arrested and his parents “arrested.”
One Tweeter insisted that Laundrie’s parents have now “dethroned Casey Anthony’s parents for most hated parents in America.”
“Wouldn’t #BrianLaundrie parents be more worried if they thought Brian was going to go kill himself?” the user wrote.
“LOL,” another said. “Brian Laundrie’s parents called the cops on Dog the Bounty Hunter 3 hours after he showed up at their door to try and help … but couldn’t call the police to report Gabby Petito missing or their s**t stain of a son for WEEKS.”
Laundrie’s parents have come under increasing scrutiny in recent days as the search for their son continues.
Protesters have swarmed around the family’s home over the last week, chanting “justice for Gabby” and waving signs – one of which read, “We think your [sic] Guilty so prove your innocence.”
The home has also been inundated with flower deliveries sent from all over the country and addressed to Gabby Petito.
BRIAN’S PARENTS’ DENIAL
Laundrie’s parents deny they helped their son escape or withheld information about his whereabouts despite a massive days-long, so-far fruitless search for him.
In a statement issued through their attorney, they said they were “concerned about Brian and hope the FBI can locate him.
“The speculation by the public and some in the press that the parents assisted Brian in leaving the family home or in avoiding arrest on a warrant that was issued after Brian had already been missing for several days is just wrong.”
Dog, meanwhile, called it a “shame they wouldn’t speak” to him.
“The police said we were welcome to knock on the door so we did. I wanted to tell the Laundries that our goal is to find Brian and bring him in alive.”
North Port Police Public Information Officer Josh Taylor confirmed: “We’ve been called to the house numerous times for all sorts of issues: media, protesters, celebrity searchers.
“It’s not something normal. If the family calls and is concerned, we will respond like we would for anyone.”
‘PARENTS KNOW’
In a later interview with Dr. Oz, Dog explained that he wanted to specifically speak with Brian’s father, and said “50 percent of the time parents know where their kids are.”
Another “35 percent of the parents help,” Dog said, adding he hopes the Laundrie family will fall into that number.
“Well, you know, I wanna talk to his dad and explain the difference between involuntary manslaughter and murder one out of Wyoming,” Dog said.
“In murder one, you’re facing the death penalty. Manslaughter is a life sentence with the possibility of parole.
“I wanted to explain to him, ‘I know exactly what you’re going through right now. As a matter of fact, I personally went through it.’ So, I just wanted to talk to the dad.”
Search efforts for Laundrie continued on Wednesday. Investigators were seen searching both the Carlton Reserve and Fort De Soto.
No further updates have been issued.
Gabby Petito timeline
Gabby Petito, 22, was last seen on August 24, leaving a hotel in Utah. Here is a timeline of Gabby Petito's disappearance:
- June 2021 – Gabby Petito and her fiancé Brian Laundrie set off on a cross-country trip across the US.
- July 4 – Gabby posts photos of herself barefoot in Gove County, Kansas.
- July 8 – Gabby posts photos of herself at the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado.
- July 18 – Gabby and Brian post photos of themselves at Utah’s Zion National Park.
- August 12 – Body camera footage was released in September showing an encounter Brian and Gabby had with police in Utah. Police confirmed that no significant injuries were reported.
- August 19 – Gabby and Brian post a video on their YouTube channel chronicling their trip. The video receives more than 200,000 views.
- August 24 – Gabby is spotted leaving a hotel in Salt Lake City, Utah.
- August 25 – Gabby Facetimes her mom, Nichole Schmidt, for the final time. In a later police report, Schmidt said her conversations with her daughter revealed “more and more tension” between her and Brian.
- August 25 – Gabby also posts her last Instagram. No location is given.
- August 27 – Gabby is seen for what’s believed to be the final time. Witnesses claim they saw Brian in an explosive argument with staff at a restaurant in Jackson Hole, leaving Gabby in tears.
- August 27 – Four hours later, travel bloggers driving through Grand Teton National Park drive past the couple’s van “abandoned” on a dirt road.
- September 1 – Brian returns home to Florida without Gabby.
- September 11 – Gabby’s parents report her missing to Suffolk County police.
- September 14 – Brian’s family issues a statement saying he has retained an attorney and will not be cooperating with investigators.
- September 14 – Brian is allegedly last seen by his family. He reportedly told them he was going hiking in Cartlon Reserve but failed to return.
- September 15 – Florida’s North Port police announce Brian is a person of interest in the case. He is not charged with any crime.
- September 16 – Utah police release body camera footage of the police encounter with Brian and Gabby.
- September 17 – Brian’s parents say they have not seen their son in a couple of days and report him missing.
- September 18 – Police announce they were searching Carlton Reserve in Florida for Brian. Police announce they have not found anything.
- September 19 – Authorities in Wyoming say they found a body in Grand Teton National Park. The FBI announces the body was believed to be Gabby’s but a full forensic identification needs to be completed first to confirm.
- September 20 – Police execute a search warrant on Laundrie’s home, seizing his silver Mustang and a hard drive that may contain “evidence relevant to proving that a felony has been committed.”
- September 21 – Officials announce they will be conducting an autopsy on the remains found in Wyoming to confirm whether or not they belong to Gabby. Police also resumed their search for Laundrie, this time on the Venice side of Carlton Reserve.
- September 21 – The FBI announced the body found in Wyoming was identified as Gabby’s. The cause of death was not yet revealed.
- September 21 – The Teton County Coroner’s office said Gabby’s official cause of death was still pending but the initial manner of death is homicide.
- September 22 – Police continue to scour Carlton Reserve for a trace of Laundrie but yield no leads. A specialist dive team is called in to assist with the hunt.
- September 23 – Officials announced a federal arrest warrant for Brian was issued.
- September 26 – Gabby’s funeral was held on Long Island, New York.
We pay for your stories!
Do you have a story for The US Sun team?
Email us at exclusive@the-sun.com or call 212 416 4552.
Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheSunUS and follow us from our main Twitter account at @TheSunUS