Brian Laundrie Told Parents 'Gabby's Gone' on Phone. His Dad Claims He Didn't Know What Son Was Talking About
Brian Laundrie had made a "frantic" phone call to his parents after murdering his fiancé Gabby Petito in August 2021
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Gabby Petito and Brian LaundrieLast October, in depositions that were just made public, Brian Laundrie’s parents spoke under oath for the first time about Gabby Petito's August 2021 murder and a disturbing phone call their son made to them shortly after strangling his fiancé to death.
Chris and Roberta Laundrie sat for a deposition ahead of a May 2024 civil lawsuit trial against them filed by Gabby's parents Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt. Court transcripts from the deposition were first made public Monday, according to Fox13, WPTV and WFLA.
Gabby, 22, was found dead in Sept. 2021 Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming after she went missing during a cross-country road trip with Brian. Brian soon went missing himself. In October 2021, his body was discovered in the Florida wilderness and an autopsy later revealed he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
Gabby’s parents filed an emotional distress complaint against Brian’s parents in March 2022, claiming the Laundries knew what happened to their daughter and where her body could be found while investigators spent weeks searching for her in Wyoming.
The complaint said Brian had made “a frantic telephone call" to his parents shortly after Petito’s death, telling them Gabby was "gone.” In his deposition, Chris acknowledged that Brian called him on August 21 and frantically said “Gabby’s gone,” according to Fox13, WPTV and WFLA.
The father said in his deposition that he had “no idea” what Brian meant by that.
“I asked him, you know, how is he doing, and he — you know, he was not calm and he got very excited and told me things had — you know, ‘Gabby’s gone’ and he got very frantic,” Chris said in his deposition, according to WFLA. “Everything was frantic and quick. So, you know, Gabby’s gone.”
Chris was asked during the deposition what else Brian said on the phone call.
“Well, it was quick,” Chris explained. “He said, you know — and he was very panicked and he said he didn’t know what to do. He said, you know, ‘Can you help me,’ you know, and he might need a lawyer, you know. And I would — I asked him why he wouldn’t tell me. He was very frantic. Everything was frantic and I started to not really comprehend, and then he said just, you know, ‘Can you help me?’ And I said, ‘Okay. I’ll help you.’ And I calmed him down and I said — I don’t know.
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Chris continued: “It was — it was all mumbled and I still don’t remember everything that happened, but, you know, he said he needed help and to get an attorney. And I told him, ‘Yeah, I’ll help you. I’ll call Steven Bertolino, and just stay put.’ And then I asked him again, and he just said, ‘Just help me.’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I’m going to, so stay calm. Stay put.’ And he hung up.”
Chris recalled his son being “very, very nervous and very scattered” on the phone, while his parents offered to put him in touch with Betolino, the family’s lawyer.
Petito’s parents are seeking at least $100,000 in damages for the mental anguish they suffered due to the alleged deceit of the Laundries, according to WFLA.
The lawsuit alleges that the Laundries helped Brian conceal Gabby's murder and were making plans for him to flee the country.
Joe Petito told lawyers during his deposition last October that there’s no amount of money that would make the family willing to settle the lawsuit.
“I want to make them hurt as much as they hurt us,” Joe said during the deposition. “There’s not amount of money that I would settle for, not a dime.”
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
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