Brian Laundrie remains had been partially eaten by animals when they were discovered in a Florida swamp, according to a full autopsy report.
Brian Laundrie autopsy report reveals animals in swamp ate part of his remains
The forensic and autopsy report described how the bones of the man who confessed to murdering his girlfriend Gabby Petito in a suicide note were exposed to “moderately extensive carnivore activity evidenced by multiple marks of torn and nibbled parts.”
“These areas are consistent with carnivores or omnivores, including canines such as feral dogs and coyotes along with rodents and raccoons,” the report mentions.
Several items were also found at the scene, including a wooden box containing a journal and photos. One of the photos was of Laundrie, but it is unclear what the other photos showed.
A red hat with a “Moab Coffee Roasters” logo was also discovered.
It was in Moab that police arrested Laundrie and Petito for a domestic incident on Aug. 12, about two weeks before Petito was killed.
Police later admitted that mistakes were made during that encounter, as Petito was considered the aggressor and they were only kept apart overnight, only to be reunited and continue their doomed journey the next day.
The 47-page report was finally released Monday, nearly four months after the 23-year-old’s remains were found in the Carlton Preserve near Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in October.
Laundrie had been the focus of a major manhunt after Petito’s family reported her missing in early September.
The young couple had embarked on the trip of a lifetime across the United States driving their RV and documenting their travels on YouTube.
Petito suddenly stopped communicating with her family and Laundrie drove the RV back to her home in Florida without her.
Her family reported her missing on September 11.
Laundrie then disappeared and her family told police she was headed to the nature preserve near her home.
Murder confession
Last month, the FBI confirmed that Laundrie had admitted to killing Petito in a notebook found next to his remains.
“A review of the notebook revealed written statements by Laundrie in which he takes responsibility for Petito’s death,” the FBI’s Denver Field Office said in a statement.
Now, the newly released report revealed new details about the circumstances surrounding the discovery of his body.
The report reveals that they discovered a backpack and shoes in the reservoir around 8:20 a.m. on Oct. 20.
“The personal items were surrounded by apparent skeletal human remains that were scattered on the ground,” it said.
Laundrie’s skeletal remains were “in plain view” on a nature trail that had previously been under nearly three feet of water.
According to the report, at the “main” scene, the skeletal remains included “right and left scapulae, a right humerus, left and right femurs, two tibias, two fibulas, two clavicles, two pelvises, a right ulna, a right radius, a sacrum, multiple ribs, multiple skull fragments along with the maxilla and mandible, and approximately twenty-five vertebrae.”
In what was described as the “secondary” scene were animal skeletal remains, a handwritten half-note, and the cap.
It is unclear what the note said.
