JAKARTA - The virtual world is in an uproar over the murder case of a female celebrity from the United States (US) named Gabby Petito. Petito died, with the body found on the edge of Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. Petito's death leaves a number of puzzles to this day.
Before being found dead, Gabby Petito had been on a vacation trip with her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, since the end of June. Petito and Laundrie leave Laundrie's parents' home in North Port, Florida, in a white 2012 Ford Transit van.
They drive to Petito state in New York to attend Laundrie's sister's graduation. The two then continued their journey. Petito and Laundrie also document their journey on YouTube and social media.
Throughout the trip, Petito continued to be in regular contact with his family, according to authorities. Petito and Laundrie also frequent various national parks, such as Monument Rocks, Colorado Springs, Great Sand Dunes National Park, and Zion National Park. The area was visited on 5, 8, 10 and 16 July, respectively.
They also take pictures and upload them on social media. The pair continued to travel until August. Still based on Petito's social media uploads, they also visited Arches National Park. Petito's Instagram account shows a photo of him and Laundrie at Delicate Arch, which was taken on August 9 but only uploaded on August 12.
On August 12, the same day as the testimony of a witness that Petito and Laundrie were involved in an argument. Witnesses reported to police in Moab, Utah and said there was a physical altercation. The police then stopped their van for a health check.
Petito reportedly scratched Laundrie. But he confessed to the police that he was in love and did not want to press charges. According to the police report, Laundrie told officers that traveling for the past four or five months created "emotional tension between them."
Police concluded it was not "domestic violence" but a "mental health crisis." On August 19, as usual there was a new upload from social media, namely a video describing Petito and Laundrie's journey which was uploaded to YouTube. Petito also uploaded two photos to Instagram, one of which shows the white van from above. This time, Petito did not indicate where he was.
Citing Reuters, Petito was last seen on August 24. Just then he left the hotel in Salt Lake City. Petito for the last time uploaded a photo on Instagram on August 25 and again did not provide a description of the location where he was. It was also the last time Pepito's mother, Nicole Schmidt, spoke to him. Petito told his mother he and Laundrie headed for Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming.
Laundry goes home without Pepito
Since then Petito really no news. The family also found it difficult to contact Petito. They started advertising on Facebook to look for Petito's whereabouts. Until finally on September 1st, Brian Laundrie came home but without Petito. Laundrie didn't say a word about Petito's whereabouts.
The Petito family finally decided to report the missing person to the police in Suffolk County, New York. The search for Petito begins. Things got even more suspicious when the Laundrie family issued a statement saying that Brian Laundrie appointed a lawyer to represent him speaking.
The statement also stated that Laundrie would not speak to law enforcement. Laundrie's attitude led the police to designate her as someone with information related to the crime in this case. This was because Laundrie kept her mouth shut and kept refusing to talk to investigators.
Petito's search continues. However, on September 17, Laundrie's parents reported that Laundrie had been missing for three days. Previously Laundrie said goodbye to go hiking alone to the Carlton Reserve. The police then began to look for the whereabouts of Laundrie.
At the same time, the authorities reported that they had found a body. The body was found in Bridger Teton National Park in Wyoming. The location was previously recorded by a blogger traveling through and through Bridger Teton National Park on Aug. 29.
In the video, a white van can be seen parked on the side of the road. The van is believed to be the van belonging to Laundrie and Petito. The body was then autopsied and it was confirmed that it was Gabby Petito. Investigators have not yet said how Petito died, but the medical team confirmed Petito's death was a homicide. Authorities have confirmed Brian Laundrie as a person with links in the case.
Brian Laundrie disappeared and why the police are having a hard time finding him
According to CNN, about 75 personnel from 16 agencies are searching for Laundrie, North Port police spokesman Josh Taylor said. Taylor said the FBI is leading the investigation and local police are "assisting our federal partners in any way we can to complete this investigation."
This search also involves a team of divers who will conduct a search at Carlton Reserve. The Port Police initially focused their search in the wilderness of the Carlton Reserve, relying on drones for video and sniffer dogs using laundry clothes to pick up the scent.
On Monday, September 20, police said they had shifted the focus of their search and were no longer looking for Laundrie in the reserve. "Right now, we currently believe we've checked all the way there," Taylor said.
However, on Tuesday 21 September the police said that they were looking for him again in the nature reserve. Authorities have been at the scene since morning. Carlton Reserve is known as a dangerous and vast nature reserve. Many areas are experiencing high flooding in the area. This makes it difficult for the police to search.
"This is a dangerous job for search crews as they wade through swamps infested with crocodiles and snakes and flooded hiking and biking trails," Taylor said.
The lack of sunlight also affects visibility for conducting searches, according to National Association for Search and Rescue (NASAR) executive director Chris Boyer. The darkness of the night also greatly hinders the search effort, especially if the person being sought does not have a source of light or fire.
When it comes to people avoiding legal action, the search becomes much more difficult. People on the run from a criminal case most likely have a plan by wearing clothes that help them blend into the Carlton Reserve environment.
In addition to avoiding being seen by helicopters or drones, it can also walk on all fours and as much as possible leave no traces, such as footprints, trash, or evidence of burning.
Boyer says technology such as night vision goggles, drones and thermal sensors can help pinpoint a person's location. Boyer says trying to find someone in this wilderness can be very difficult.
What makes finding Laundrie also difficult is the distance she can cover before the authorities start looking for her. He could have walked so far before the police got a report.
"The search area starts to increase every hour he can be in the car or on foot," Boyer said. "It's getting pretty scary, to be honest."
Apart from being suspected of being involved in Gabby Petito's death, Laundrie was also charged with illegally using a debit card. An arrest warrant has been issued for Brian Laundrie by a federal grand jury.
He was charged with using a Capital One Bank card and a person's personal identification number to make unauthorized withdrawals of more than US$1,000 during the period during which Petito disappeared. The indictment does not say who owns the card and the nature of the charges has not been disclosed.
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