The FBI announced on Wednesday that partial human remains were discovered in a Florida wilderness area where officials were hunting for Brian Laundrie, the fiance of Gabby Petito, a young lady who vanished on a road trip with Laundrie.
They also discovered things suspected to belong to Laundrie after his parents, Chris and Roberta Laundrie, joined the FBI and police in the hunt, which began more than a month after Laundrie went missing after visiting the enormous Carlton Reserve park.
The FBI added in a statement that "investigators discovered what appeared to be human remains, as well as personal items... belonging to Brian Laundrie." The bodies have yet to be recognized.
At the same time, investigators continued their quest for information about Petito's death, found in a remote section of Wyoming in late September. The objects were discovered at the Myakkahatchee Creek environmental park. According to the FBI's Tampa branch, investigators were working at Carlton Reserve, close to the park.
After the things were discovered, officials were summoned to the reserve, according to the Sarasota County Medical Examiner's Office.
Petito, who went missing on September 11 while her parents were on a cross-country trip out west, was reported missing by her parents. Laundrie, 23, is a person of interest in her murder.
The story sparked widespread interest, but it also raised unpleasant questions about the lack of attention paid to the hundreds of missing or killed Native Americans and other minority women around the country. Petito was a white person.
Laundrie had been missing for two weeks when he returned home alone from his cross-country excursion on September 14. His parents claimed he left their North Port home with a backpack but no wallet or smartphone.
Laundrie's abduction spurred days of searching by scores of FBI agents and law enforcement teams utilizing drones, sniffer dogs, and underwater equipment in the swampy Carlton Reserve wilderness park.
In late September, Laundrie was charged with unlawful use of a debit card while he was away.
During Petito's disappearance, a federal grand jury indicted him for allegedly using a Capital One Bankcard, and someone's identifying number to make illicit withdrawals or charges totaling more than $1,000.
