GABBY PETITO’S FAMILY REVEAL CHILLING TEXTS THEY SAY SHOWED HOW BRIAN LAUNDRIE ISOLATED HER

Five years after the death of Gabby Petito, her family says they are still discovering painful signs that, in retrospect, showed how her relationship with Brian Laundrie had changed.

Gabby was 22 when she was killed during a cross-country road trip with Laundrie, her fiancé.

Now, her mother Nichole Schmidt and stepmother Tara Petito have spoken about text messages they say revealed an increasingly troubling dynamic — including attempts to turn Gabby against the people closest to her.

The family says Laundrie criticized them in messages to Gabby while presenting his own family as the people she should rely on.

Tara told The Sun that the messages suggested to her that Laundrie was trying to create distance between Gabby and her family.

“We’ve seen text messages of him saying this to her, bad mouthing all of us, while his family was great,” Tara said.

She described it as another way of isolating Gabby.

The family’s account comes as they prepare to travel to London for CrimeCon UK, where they plan to discuss what they have learned from Gabby’s death and their continuing work on domestic-violence prevention.

THE COUPLE WHO APPEARED TO HAVE IT ALL

To people watching from the outside, Gabby’s relationship with Laundrie appeared to be part of an exciting young couple’s dream.

Gabby was a social-media creator documenting a long road trip across the United States.

In July 2021, she and Laundrie left New York in a converted van, planning to travel through western America and visit national parks.

Gabby shared photographs and videos of the journey online.

The couple appeared happy in many of the posts.

But behind those images, her family says, there were warning signs that became increasingly difficult to ignore after her death.

The FBI investigation later established that Laundrie had killed Gabby before returning alone to his parents’ home in Florida.

THE POLICE STOP THAT CAME WEEKS BEFORE HER DEATH

One of the most important warning signs occurred on August 12, 2021, when police in Moab, Utah, stopped the couple’s van after a 911 caller reported seeing Laundrie hit Gabby.

Police body-camera footage showed Gabby visibly distressed and crying.

She told officers that she and Laundrie had been arguing and blamed herself for some of the conflict.

She also spoke about having obsessive-compulsive disorder and becoming frustrated while cleaning the van.

Officers observed injuries on Gabby and Laundrie.

Ultimately, police did not arrest either person. Instead, the couple were separated for the night.

Laundrie stayed at a hotel while Gabby remained with the van.

CBS’s reconstruction of the case notes that the police report recorded Gabby as having struck Laundrie, and no arrest was made at the time.

For Gabby’s family, watching that footage years later remains extremely painful.

Nichole has said that Gabby’s stepfather, Jim Schmidt, still cannot bring himself to watch the entire video.

“YOU CAN’T UNSEE” THE WARNING SIGNS

Looking back, Gabby’s family says they now recognize patterns that they did not fully understand at the time.

Nichole said she had never imagined that something like this could happen to her daughter.

She described what the family now sees as a pattern of “love bombing” followed by isolation.

The family says the relationship developed quickly and that Laundrie increasingly became the central person in Gabby’s world.

Nichole told The Sun:

“Basically what we’ve learned, looking back, is that Brian ‘love bombed’ Gabby. It moved very quickly, he isolated her.”

She said the family wants other young people and parents to recognize such warning signs earlier.

“We’ve learned that these are patterns and they are predictable, which means they are preventable,” she said.

The family’s comments are part of a broader campaign through the Gabby Petito Foundation, which works on domestic-violence awareness, missing-person cases and prevention.

THE FINAL DAYS OF GABBY’S LIFE

After the August 12 police encounter, Gabby and Laundrie continued their journey.

They continued posting about their travels.

But investigators later determined that Gabby’s life ended in Wyoming.

Her remains were discovered in September 2021 in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, near the Spread Creek area.

The Teton County coroner determined that she died from blunt-force injuries to the head and neck, with manual strangulation contributing to her death.

Laundrie had already returned to Florida without her.

On September 1, he arrived at his parents’ home in North Port driving the couple’s van.

Gabby’s family did not know where she was.

On September 11, after being unable to contact her, they reported her missing.

The FBI later established that Laundrie had used Gabby’s debit card without authorization after her death and had sent text messages from Gabby’s phone in an apparent attempt to make investigators believe she was still alive.

LAUNDRIE DISAPPEARS

As investigators began focusing on Laundrie, he disappeared.

His parents reported him missing on September 17, 2021.

A massive search followed in Florida.

His remains were eventually discovered in the Carlton Reserve area.

The FBI later concluded that Laundrie died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Investigators also found a notebook in which Laundrie admitted responsibility for Gabby’s death.

Because Laundrie died before he could be prosecuted, there was never a criminal trial against him.

The FBI closed its investigation after concluding that he was responsible for Gabby’s death and had acted alone.

THE PLACE WHERE GABBY WAS FOUND

For Nichole, the location where Gabby’s remains were discovered has become a painful but strangely comforting place.

The family eventually scattered some of Gabby’s ashes in a river near the area where she was found.

Nichole said Gabby loved nature and hiking, and the family wanted her to continue her journey in a place she would have appreciated.

She described the surrounding landscape, with the Teton mountains, river rocks and sage, as extraordinarily beautiful.

She also described it as “Heaven on Earth.”

Last year, Nichole, her husband Joe Schmidt, Tara Petito and Gabby’s grandmother Mary Wickman travelled by helicopter to the area.

Nichole said the emotional experience made her feel close to her daughter.

“You don’t want to leave,” she recalled.

FIVE YEARS LATER, THEY ARE STILL TALKING ABOUT GABBY

Gabby’s family has chosen not to let her story become only another true-crime case.

They established the Gabby Petito Foundation and have spent years speaking about domestic violence and the warning signs that can appear before a relationship becomes dangerous.

The foundation also works with first responders, call operators and healthcare professionals.

In March 2026, the foundation held an educational event at Fairmont State University focused on recognizing domestic-violence warning signs and supporting victims.

The family has also continued to speak publicly about the lessons they wish they had understood earlier.

Nichole said parents can face a difficult balance.

Telling a young person that their family dislikes their partner can sometimes push them further away, she explained.

Instead, she encourages families to remain close, keep communication open and teach young people to pay attention to how a relationship makes them feel.

“STAY CLOSE”

For the Petito family, one of the most important lessons is not simply recognizing a dangerous partner.

It is making sure someone experiencing an unhealthy relationship does not become isolated.

Nichole has urged parents and friends to remain present even when they are worried about a loved one’s relationship.

“Stay close,” is the message behind much of the family’s advocacy.

They want young people to understand that controlling behaviour, isolation, intimidation and other warning signs should not be dismissed simply because a relationship also contains affection.

The family’s hope is that awareness can help someone recognize a dangerous situation before it becomes irreversible.

GABBY’S MEMORY LIVES ON

Tara continues to wear a necklace featuring the Teton mountains where Gabby’s remains were found.

She described it as part of her healing.

For Gabby’s family, the mountains have therefore become connected to both unimaginable grief and treasured memories of the young woman who loved travelling and nature.

Tara said Gabby had been trying to show the beauty of the places she visited to the world.

The family now hopes to continue doing something similar — keeping Gabby’s story visible while using it to educate others.

“SHE’LL ALWAYS BE OUR GIRL”

Five years after Gabby’s death, her family says they still talk about her constantly.

Nichole has said they love talking about Gabby because she remains part of their lives.

“She’ll always be our girl,” she said.

The family knows that they cannot change what happened in Wyoming.

But they believe they can change what comes afterward.

Through the Gabby Petito Foundation, public speaking and education, they are trying to turn their experience of loss into information that could help another person recognize the warning signs of an unhealthy relationship.

Their message is simple: pay attention, stay connected and do not ignore the red flags.

Gabby’s life ended at 22.

But her family’s work to keep others safe continues.