Gabby Petito's parents cast shade on Brian Laundrie's family in a new docuseries that reveals additional details about the timing of their daughter's murder at her fiancé's hands in the wilderness of Wyoming, especially the allegation that they shelled out $25,000 to a prominent attorney while professing their ignorance of the crime.
"You're going to throw $25,000 of your hard-earned cash out on a lawyer from f---ing Wyoming, and you're telling me you didn't ask where she was?" Joseph Petito says in Netflix's "American Murder: Gabby Petito."
The payment came three days after Laundrie called his parents and less than a week after Petito was last seen alive.
"That's some bulls---," he added, "I'll tell you that right now."
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Joe Petito and Tara Petito in "American Murder: Gabby Petito" (Netflix)
Her stepfather, Jim Schmidt, echoed his concerns.
"I don't think the amount of money they paid their attorney would be for anything less than to represent somebody for murder," he told the documentarians.
The lawyer in question is Tom Fleener, an Army veteran and former JAG lawyer whose clients included the Guantánamo Bay detainee Ali al Bahlul, a former bodyguard to the 9/11 terrorist Usama bin Laden, who Navy SEALs killed in 2011.
Fleener has previously declined to discuss the Laundrie case with Fox News Digital. He did not immediately respond to a request for comment for this story.
Jim Schmidt and Nichole Schmidt in "American Murder: Gabby Petito" (Netflix)
The Laundrie family attorney, Steve Bertolino, collected $25,000 from his clients and used it to retain Fleener's law firm. He said he has not collected any payment from the Laundries for his own legal role in the saga, which landed him in the middle of a now-settled lawsuit brought by Petito's parents.
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Timeline of Petito's disappearance
- 8/27: Gabby Petito last seen alive in Jackson, Wyoming
- 8/29: Brian Laundrie tells his parents Petito is "gone" in "frantic" phone call
- 8/30: Laundrie sends phony texts from Petito's phone to himself and to her mother
- 9/1: Laundrie arrives at his parents' Florida house, driving Petito's van
- 9/2: Bertolino enters a fee agreement with Wyoming law firm on Laundrie's behalf
- 9/6-7: Laundrie family goes camping at Fort DeSoto Park
- 9/11: Petito reported missing
- 9/13: Laundrie evades FBI surveillance, leaves his parents' home and takes his own life
- 9/19: Petito's remains are discovered near their campsite outside Jackson
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While their social media told one story, there was a dark side to the cross-country road trip of Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie, pictured here in "American Murder: Gabby Petito." (Netflix)
Bertolino arranged for a local defense attorney after Brian Laundrie made a panicked phone call to his father from Wyoming, repeatedly saying "Gabby's gone," according to court documents.
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Christopher Laundrie denied knowledge of Petito's death at the time, and he said through his lawyer that his son hung up before sharing further details.
"Brian hung up on Chris. I said, ‘When Brian calls you back, give him my number, and you tell him to call me. You do not talk to him,’" Bertolino told Fox News Digital when depositions in the civil suit became public.
Chris and Roberta Laundrie are shown in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park on the morning when police found their son's skeletal remains. (Michael Ruiz/Fox News Digital)
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Both Christopher and Roberta Laundrie conceded that they had concerns for Petito's welfare after the call but denied having knowledge of the murder. Brian Laundrie invoked his right to remain silent but ultimately left behind a suicide note and confession.
Brian's sister, Cassie Laundrie, had also been expected to testify in the case, but her interview was canceled before the sides reached a settlement.
Pat Reilly, an attorney for Petito's parents, said he called it off "because she had no information related to the issues of the litigation."
Gabby Petito, 22, vanished in August 2021 and was later found dead near a campsite she shared with fiancé Brian Laundrie. (Steve Petito)
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Cassie Laundrie has denied knowledge of her parents' conversations with her brother and recently alleged that a police detective, whose voice can be overheard on bodycam video, mischaracterized their conversation.
Since the case grabbed national headlines in 2021, Petito's parents have become advocates for missing persons and domestic violence victims.
If you or someone you know is suffering from domestic violence, please contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233 (SAFE).