Brian Laundrie's Sister Says She Hasn't Spoken to Him Since Gabby Petito Disappeared

The sister of a Florida antheral who has declined to talk to investigators aft his fiancée was reported missing spoke warmly of her member successful an interrogation broadcast connected Friday and said that she, too, was hoping to talk to him.

The man, Brian Laundrie, 23, returned location unsocial connected Sept. 1 from a cross-country travel with his fiancée, Gabrielle Petito, 22. Her parents reported her missing 10 days later.

In an interrogation broadcast connected Friday connected ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Mr. Laundrie’s sister Cassie Laundrie said she had not spoken to him since helium returned to his location successful North Port, Fla., adjacent Fort Myers.

“I privation I could speech to him,’’ she said. “I’ve cooperated each mode that I can. I privation I had accusation oregon I would springiness more.”

Ms. Laundrie said her member is the benignant of idiosyncratic who does the close happening for his household and Ms. Petito.

“He’s a fantastic uncle,’’ she said. “He’s ever been determination erstwhile I request him. He’s been determination each clip Gabby has needed him.”

Ms. Laundrie became the archetypal subordinate of Mr. Laundrie’s household to talk publically astir the case, erstwhile portions of the interrogation were released connected Thursday night.

“Obviously, maine and my household privation Gabby to beryllium recovered safe,” Ms. Laundrie told ABC. “She’s similar a sister and my children emotion her, and each I privation is for her to travel location harmless and found, and this to beryllium conscionable a large misunderstanding.”

Through a lawyer, Mr. Laundrie has declined to talk with investigators, the constabulary said. He has not been arrested oregon declared a fishy successful the case; the constabulary person described him lone arsenic a idiosyncratic of interest, a vague word often utilized by instrumentality enforcement agencies to place a idiosyncratic they judge whitethorn person been progressive successful a crime.

F.B.I. agents, National Park rangers and the constabulary successful astatine slightest 2 states person been searching for Ms. Petito, since her parents reported her missing connected Sept. 11.

She near with Mr. Laundrie successful July successful a achromatic Ford van outfitted for a cross-country adventure, according to the police.

Speaking to reporters successful Florida connected Thursday, Ms. Petito’s father, Joseph Petito, said helium remained determined to find her alive. “What I request from everybody present is help,” helium said.

He called connected Mr. Laundrie’s parents, the couple’s friends and different household members to speech with the constabulary and the F.B.I., which has acceptable up a extremity line.

“Whatever you tin bash to marque definite my girl comes home, I’m asking for that help,” Mr. Petito said. “There is thing other that matters to maine now.”

In a letter, Ms. Petito’s parents and stepparents begged Mr. Laundrie’s parents to archer them “where Brian near Gabby.”

The lawsuit has drawn wide attention, arsenic reporters person gathered extracurricular Mr. Laundrie’s location and members of the nationalist person scoured the couple’s Instagram accounts, which depicted a seemingly carefree, nomadic “Van Life” successful the American West.

Ms. Petito and Mr. Laundrie near New York connected July 2 for what was expected to beryllium a four-month cross-country travel visiting nationalist parks, said Ms. Petito’s stepfather, Jim Schmidt.

Mr. Laundrie posted connected Instagram that they were “downsizing our beingness into this itty bitty van.” Ms. Petito posted that converting a Ford Transit into a camper was “an escapade successful itself.” The van, decorated with plants, tiny pieces of creation and photos, was outfitted with a bed, tiny bookcases and a tiny woody antagonistic to hole food.

But thing seemingly went incorrect successful Utah, her household said.

On Aug. 12 successful Moab, Utah, Mr. Laundrie had “some benignant of argument” with Ms. Petito and told her to instrumentality a locomotion and calm down, according to the Moab police, who responded to a study of a “domestic problem.”

Mr. Laundrie and Ms. Petito some told the constabulary that they were successful emotion and engaged to beryllium joined and “desperately didn’t privation to spot anyone charged with a crime.”

Mr. Laundrie told 1 serviceman that “issues betwixt the 2 had been gathering implicit the past fewer days,” a constabulary study said.

Ms. Petito cried during the encounter with the constabulary and said she suffered from anxiety, according to assemblage camera footage of the episode. In the constabulary report, Ms. Petito is recorded saying she moved to slap Mr. Laundrie due to the fact that she feared that helium “was going to permission her successful Moab without a ride.”

Both told the constabulary that the occurrence should beryllium classified arsenic a “mental/emotional wellness ‘break,’” alternatively than arsenic a home assault.

Ms. Laundrie said a constabulary assemblage camera signaling showing the brushwood was a acquainted scene.

“It looked emblematic of some of them,” she told ABC. “Whenever they fight, they would instrumentality a small interruption and travel backmost and beryllium fine, due to the fact that that’s what you bash successful a couple.”

In the report, the constabulary described Mr. Laundrie arsenic the unfortunate of the incident. They arranged for him to enactment successful a edifice that nighttime portion Ms. Petito kept the van. No charges were filed, the study states.

The mates had documented their cross-country travel on Instagram and in an eight-minute video that they posted connected YouTube connected Aug. 19. The video, titled “Van Life,” showed them kissing, scaling rocks and laughing astatine however the Utah prima had melted the cocoa successful Mr. Laundrie’s granola.

“I emotion the van,” Ms. Petito said, smiling astatine Mr. Laundrie.

On Instagram, she kept a idiosyncratic blog of their journeys. In galore of the posts published earlier her disappearance, she was photographed smiling and posing against backdrops of nature.

In a bid of photographs posted connected Aug. 12, the time of the constabulary brushwood successful Moab, Ms. Petito sat connected a pumpkin-colored rock, shielding her look from the prima successful Arches National Park successful Utah.

Ms. Petito, the oldest of six siblings, had been moving arsenic a pharmacy technician to prevention wealth for the trip. She met Mr. Laundrie astatine Bayport-Blue Point High School connected Long Island, Mr. Schmidt said. They began dating aft graduation and moved 2 years agone to Florida, helium said.

In their posts from 2020, the mates expressed excitement astir their future.

On July 2, she posted a photograph of their archetypal date, their heads together, wielding chopsticks. “Here’s a representation from our archetypal day due to the fact that I person truthful overmuch emotion for you. Brian asked maine to wed him and I said yes!”

The pursuing day, helium posted a photograph of them smiling astatine each other. “My biggest fearfulness is that 1 time I’ll aftermath up and it volition person each been a dream,” helium wrote. “Because that is what each 2nd has felt similar since the infinitesimal we recovered each other.”

Johnny Diaz contributed reporting.