Did Gabby Petito’s family warn her about Brian Laundrie?
The case of Gabby Petito’s death has been absolutely heartbreaking and completely shocking since people started following the details of it in August 2021. It’s believed that her fiancé, Brian Laundrie, had something to do with her death. As of right now, he’s on the run and no one knows exactly where he’s located.
Laundrie’s disappearance does nothing except make him look more guilty. In fact, some people are convinced Laundrie and his parents should all be put away over what happened to Petito. Did Petito’s parents warn her about Laundrie before this all happened?
Did Gabby Petito’s family warn her about Brian Laundrie?
When Gabby Petito & Brian Laundrie first started dating, her father, Joseph Petito, would occasionally jokingly poke fun at Laundrie throughout the course of the relationship. In an episode of Dr. Phil, he said, “I’ve never actually liked any of Gabby’s boyfriends. I’ve never actually called any of them by their real name, ever. I always tried to use the female versions of the boyfriends name, just to intimidate them a little bit.”
Gabby’s father would refer to Laundrie as Brianne rather than Brian. It’s safe to say her dad wasn’t Laundrie’s biggest fan during the relationship. Although Gabby‘s father didn’t like Laundrie much, he also didn’t feel like Laundrie was a direct threat either.
According to People Magazine he said, “I hate to say it, but they were happy. There are no red flags that stick out.” Whatever was happening behind closed doors between Petito & Laundrie was heavily hidden and kept under wraps from the rest of the world to take note of.
What her family is saying now
Now that the world knows Gabby Petito’s life was prematurely taken, the process of mourning has begun. Even strangers on social media who never met Gabby in real life are feeling the pain of her loss because her story isn’t an uncommon one. Young women feeling like they are trapped in abusive relationships get stuck in toxic cycles all the time.
In some horrifying instances, those toxic cycles end in death and that’s what happened to Petito. At her funeral service, her father, Joseph Petito gave advice to any people who might be going through what his daughter was going through before her death.
He said to ABC News, “I want you to take a look at these pictures, and I want you to be inspired by Gabby. If there’s a trip you guys want to take, take it now. Do it now while you have the time. If there’s a relationship that you’re in that might not be the best for you, leave it now.”
Her stepfather, Jim Schmidt, also gave a eulogy at her funeral. Schmidt said, “Parents are not supposed to bury their children. This is not how life is supposed to work. Gabby, 22-years-old, helped teach me that you can always make money but you can’t make up for lost time. Gabby loved life and lived her life every single day.”
He added, “She’s an example for all of us to live by, to enjoy every moment in this beautiful world as she did. To love and give love to all like she did.” It’s obvious her parents are heartbroken over her loss. They’re also likely very puzzled by the fact that none of them saw any red flags to warn Gabby about Brian ahead of time.
Gabby Petito’s family foundation
Healing from the loss of Gabby Petito is not something her family is going to easily be able to do anytime soon. They’ve decided to launch an organization called the Gabby Petito Foundation in order to provide resources & proper guidance to any parents who have missing children. They didn’t know they needed to warn Gabby about Brian but maybe other parents can learn from their experience.
