CLOUD OF SUSPICION
Brian Laundrie’s mom Roberta faced arrest and perp-walk by FBI just days after his girlfriend Gabby Petito’s body found
The FBI looked into leveraging charges against the killer's mom in connection to Petito's death
AN FBI agent has disclosed that they debated arresting Roberta Laundrie, mother of Brian Laundrie, in the days after Brian's girlfriend Gabby Petito's body was found.
Laundrie’s attorney, Steven Bertolino, revealed in depositions filed earlier this week in Sarasota County Circuit Court, Florida, that he was planning to hold a press conference with his clients just two days after Petito’s body was found in Wyoming.
3
3
3
“I spoke to Chris and Roberta about this and I said, we need to set forth what happened at least from their perspective,” Bertolino said in a previous deposition from October 2023. “And I scheduled a press conference.”
According to Bertolino, the FBI upon learning of plans for the press conference advised against it and revealed the possibility of Roberta, Brian’s mother, being charged in their investigation.
“I got a call from the FBI and they indicated to me, and I won’t say no uncertain terms, but they indicated to me in terms that were clear that I should not have the press conference," Bertolino said.
"I had my suspicions as to why and they indicated that if I went forward with the press conference that they were going to arrest Roberta and put her through a full perp walk, including but not limited to, statements in front of the camera and everything else,” the attorney continued.
Read More on Gabby Petito:
Bertolino said that he learned of the FBI's plans from Bryan Gee, an agent based in their New York office.
Roberta could not fathom what the FBI could possibly charge her with in connection to Petito's murder, according to Bertolino, prompting the attorney to inquire with the agency to learn more about the charges.
“I believe I had back and forth conversations with Bryan Gee as to what, what is here and he could not tell me. All he would tell me was that he believed it was something electronic. It was something they believed Roberta had done with electronics.”
Bertolino added in his deposition that his only theory on what electronics-related charge the FBI could use to arrest Roberta was accompanying her son to a cell phone store to purchase a new phone.
Most read in The US Sun
Roberta had accompanied Brian to the store after he had returned from Wyoming without Petito.
In response, Bertolino pointed out to Gee that purchasing a cell phone is something many parents normally do with their children, and was something the attorney had done on occasion himself.
“If that’s what you’re charging her with that she went to the store and bought him a cell phone, Roberta will do the perp walk," Bertolino said.
Bertolino ultimately chose to cancel the Laundrie press conference and Roberta was never charged.
Bertolino never mentioned whether Christopher Laundrie, Brian’s father, faced the possibility of charges from the FBI's investigation.
Bertolino theorized in his deposition that the FBI didn’t want the Laundries to hold a press conference due to internal issues they were having with the investigation.
The FBI agents and the North Port Police Department raised questions of competence after officers mistook Brian Laundrie for Roberta leaving the Laundrie home in September 2021.
“I believe that part of the reason they didn’t want me to speak the following week is that they didn’t want me to talk about all the disarray that they were having,” Bertolino said. “That’s my belief.”
Brian’s parents were never charged over the course of the FBI’s investigation into Petito’s murder in 2021.
Brian committed suicide in October 2021 after leaving a note confessing to Petito's murder and so was never able to be prosecuted by authorities.
The FBI's investigation concluded in January 2022.
The Laundrie's are now being sued by Petito’s parents, Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt, in civil court for intentional infliction of emotional distress.
Read More on The US Sun
The lawsuit claims the Laundries were aware of Petito’s murder after Brian returned from the trip without her, but chose to do nothing other than release a misleading statement that said they hoped Gabby would be found.
The trial is scheduled to begin May 13, 2024 in Venice, Florida.