This article covers sensitive topics that may be disturbing to some readers. Reader discretion is advised.

Gabrielle (Gabby) Petito, was born on March 19, 1999, in Blue Point, New York. She was the oldest of six siblings and had a very close relationship with her parents, Nicole Schmidt and Joseph Petito.

Gabby went to Bayport Blue Point High School in Long Island, where she met Brian Laundrie, a junior, when she was a sophomore. She graduated in 2017 and applied to Cape Fear Community College, but never attended.

After high school, Gabby moved to Carolina Beach, North Carolina, where she worked as a hostess for a small restaurant near Wilmington until January 2019.

In March 2019, Gabby and Brian began dating and moved in together with his parents in North Port, Florida. The couple worked at Publix in North Port, where she was a pharmacist technician and he was in the grocery department.

In December 2019, Rose Davis, who became Gabby’s close friend after she moved to Florida, met Brian Laundrie for the first time. According to PEOPLE, after their first meeting, Davis told her mother, “Something’s a little off about him. I don’t know what.” Davis further states, “I tried not to judge their relationship, but I knew something was off.”

Almost a year later in December 2020, Gabby purchased a 2012 Ford Transit Connect van and converted it into a camper, because the couple wanted to travel across the country.

To save money for the trip, she began to work 50-hour weeks at Taco Bell. When they finally got the funds, they began the trip, blogging their adventures for their YouTube channel, Nomadic Statik.

On July 2, 2021, Gabby and Brian began their cross-country road trip. Gabby had always wanted to travel across the world since it was one of her biggest passions. On the road, they visited various national parks from around the nation to explore and stay at.

However, their perfect van life was quickly interrupted. In Moab, Utah on August 12, a witness named Chris called the police to report a couple fighting with each other. This couple was revealed to be Brian and Gabby. Chris describes how Brian “was ‘slapping’ Gabby Petito and chasing her up and down a sidewalk.” They eventually got into the van together and drove off, Brian in the driver’s seat.

Police body camera footage reveals officers Robins and Pratt from the Moab City Police Department saw the van driving aimlessly near the entrance to Arches National Park, going 45 mph in a 15 mph zone, and instructed them to stop the vehicle. Throughout the footage you can see Gabby is emotionally drained and scared. When asked why, Gabby said, “I was crying because we’ve been fighting — some personal issues.” She further stated how Brian was stressing her out.

Gabby had marks on her left cheek, eye, and nose. Later on during the case, a photo from Gabby’s phone is retrieved from August 12, where her face is bruised and has blood on it. The department decided the incident was a domestic dispute or a mental health issue, therefore no charges were made in the incident and officers told the couple to spend the night apart.

On August 25, Gabby spoke to her mother for the last time on the phone. She explains that Brian and her are at the Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. The couple’s van was last spotted at the park around the same time.

Just two days later on August 27, Gabby was last seen with Brian at a Whole Foods store in Wyoming. Following this, there was a couple who witnessed a “commotion” involving the two at a small restaurant the same day, where Gabby was in tears and Brian was visibly angry.

After murdering his fiance, Brian tried to cover up the murder by making an alibi — texting Gabby’s parents through her phone. According to FBI Special Agent Loretta Bush said during the documentary, “The activity between the two phones was almost instantaneous. Brian was holding both phones and talking directly to himself. It was apparent that he was trying to make an alibi.”

Brian also sent a text message to Gabby’s mom through her phone, Nichole Schmidt, asking to contact Gabby’s grandfather Stan, who was trying to get in touch with Gabby. The text message referred to him as Stan rather than Grandpa, which Nichole found odd.

Brian began his drive back to Florida without Gabby in the van on August 30. Richard Stafford, Gabby’s lawyer said on the “Dr. Phil” show that “[Brian] ran, he stole her credit card, he used her credit card to get home and then ran from the police.”

After a few days when Gabby’s parents still received no contact from her, on September 1, Brian returned to his parents’ home in Florida with Gabby’s van, yet she was not with him. She was later reported officially missing by her family about ten days later on September 11, and the search for Gabby began.

On September 13, Brian left his parent’s house stating he would not speak to authorities without his lawyer present. He was then reported missing by his parents just four days later, on September 17.

On September 19, Gabby’s remains were found at the Spread Creek Dispersed Camping Area in Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming. Her death was later ruled as a homicide, caused by strangulation on September 21, just 3-4 weeks after her body was found on October 12. She died at the age of 22-years-old, probably around August 27.

On October 20, Brian’s remains were found in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Florida. November 23 marks the day Brian’s cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

There was a notebook found with his remains, which gave more insight into their relationship and her killing. Brian writes in the notebook, “I panicked, I was in shock. But from the moment I decided to take away her pain, I knew I couldn’t go on without her.”

Along with the notebook, in the backpack with his remains, was a letter from Roberta Laundrie, Brian’s mother, marked “burn after reading”. The letter writes how Roberta would do anything for her son, as she states, “If you’re in jail I will bake a cake with a file in it. If you need to dispose of a body I will show up with a shovel and garbage bags.”

This chilling letter was used in court, however, Brian’s parents were not charged with any crimes and they faced no consequences.

As a result of this case, Gabby’s father, Joseph Petito, now advocates for missing non-caucasian people. According to CNN, Petito stated, “I looked at popular missing persons cases and the ones that hit the mainstream all looked the same.”

Through the Gabby Petito Foundation, he has spent the last three years advocating for this to change and raise awareness of missing people and prevent domestic violence. The foundation also partners with the Black & Missing Foundation.

Gabby was a young free-spirited girl who loved to travel. She was full of so much joy due to the start of her trip. She created the YouTube Channel Nomadic Statik which had a singular video posted about their cross-country road trip, and how everything was going along. The video has over 10 million views and has raised awareness of her case and helped people hear about her story. There is also a newly-released Netflix documentary about Gabby that is three episodes long.

If you or loved one is struggling with domestic violence, call 800-799-7233 or text BEGIN to 88788. You can also go to their official website.