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Crime

20th Sep 2021

Accidental footage may have helped FBI find body in Gabby Petito search

Kieran Galpin

Petito’s body may have been found thanks to Youtubers

Footage from YouTube showing the white van of missing influencer Gabby Petito may have been instrumental in locating remains that are believed to be hers.

YouTubers Jenn and Kyle Bethune, more commonly known as ‘Red White & Bethune’ on Youtube, shared footage on the platform after discovering a white van that looked similar to Petito’s, reports Insider.

Soon after they posted the video, officials announced that a body had been unearthed near where the van had been spotted.

The footage was captured on August 27 at Grand Teton National Park, Jenn Bethune told Insider.

They had been reviewing the footage weeks after its initial filming when they recognised a similarity between the van they had recorded and the one Petito was last seen travelling in with now-missing fiancé, Brian Laundrie . The footage was then given to the FBI.

Speaking on the development in the investigation, FBI agent Charles Jones told the press: “I would like to extend sincere and heartfelt condolences to Gabby’s family.

“As every parent can imagine, this is an incredibly difficult time for her family.

“The cause of death has not been determined.”

The FBI then announced on Sunday that they had discovered remains matching the description of Petito but nothing has been confirmed as of yet. The autopsy is scheduled for Tuesday, reports CNN.

Petito was reported missing on 11 September after Laundrie returned home from the couple’s ‘van-life’ trip alone on 1 September.

Petito’s fiancé, who has been missing since 14 September, is a suspect in Petito’s disappearance. His parents released a statement via Fox News.

The tribute reads: “The news about Gabby Petito is heartbreaking. The Laundrie family prays for Gabby and her family.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/CUBQyRavk6d/?utm_source=ig_embed

Joseph Petito, Gabby’s father, posted an image to Instagram alongside a caption that read: “she touched the world”.

Similarly, a statement released by Petito’s family reads: “All of Gabby’s family want the world to know that Brian is not missing, he is hiding. Gabby is missing.”

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