What Happened to Gabby Petito? The Devastating True Story Behind ‘American Murder’ on Netflix
Another day, another devastating true crime documentary and this time Netflix has focused on the heart-wrenching disappearance and death of aspiring influencer Gabby Petito.
For those unfamiliar with the mystery surrounding Petito’s tragic death: in the summer of 2021, 22-year-old Petito and her boyfriend Brian Laundrie went on a cross-country road trip while Petito documented their #VanLife journey on social media. However, not everything was as it seemed and just two months into their adventure, Petito went missing and was later found dead. She only managed to create and post one video of their trip on her YouTube channel.
The three-part documentary American Murder: Gabby Petito features interviews with Petito’s family and friends and, in an official logline from the streaming service, aims to ‘reveal the tragic reality behind their Insta-perfect life and unveil the painful moments where their story could have taken a different turn’. This is everything you need to know about Gabby Petito and the case that the Netflix documentary American Murder: Gabby Petito tells.
Who is Gabby Petito?
Before Petito embarked on the nomadic life of a content creator and documented her road trip across America, she was a 22-year-old from Blue Point, New York.
In December 2020, Petito had saved enough money from her job at Taco Bell to purchase a 2012 Ford Transit Connect van converted into a camper. The idea was that this would be the vehicle to document their adventure. However, Petito’s dreams of building a following for her #VanLife series were crushed when her body was found on September 19, 2021, at the Spread Creek Campsite in the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming.
The last time Petito was seen alive was in August 2021, when she and Laundrie were caught on CCTV visiting a Whole Foods in Wyoming.
What happened to Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie?
The adventure of Petito and Laundrie began in July 2021, but just a month into their journey, the couple was reported to the police after a bystander in Utah witnessed a physical altercation between the two, prompting the police call. Bodycam footage released in the weeks after her body was discovered as the police continued their investigation showed Petito telling officers, ‘Some days I have really bad OCD. I was just cleaning and straightening up the [van]. I was apologizing to him and saying, “I’m so mean” because sometimes I have OCD and sometimes I get really frustrated. Not that I’m mean to him. I just, I, my vibe is, I’m in a bad mood. And I just said, “I’m sorry if I’m in a bad mood.”
I’ve just… I did a lot of work this morning on my computer. And I just quit my job to travel across the country and start a blog. I have a blog. So I’m building my website. I’m really stressed and he believes that I can’t do anything, so we’ve been fighting all morning and he wouldn’t let me in the car.’
When an officer saw her injuries on her face and arm, Petito told them that Laundrie ‘grabbed her face,’ causing the mark. She later told the police that she had hit Laundrie first.
Laundrie told the officers, ‘I said, “Let’s take a breather and not go anywhere, and just take it easy for a little bit.” She got worked up. She had her phone and was trying to get the keys to me. I tried to, I know I shouldn’t push her. I tried to push her away to say, “Let’s just take a step back, breathe, and look.” She got me with her phone.’
The couple was ordered not to have any contact with each other, including texts, until the next day. However, that same evening, they reunited and left together for Salt Lake City.
What happened to Gabby Petito?
In September 2021, Petito’s parents reported their daughter missing after not hearing from her, while Laundrie returned to his parents’ home in Florida and refused to cooperate with the police investigation. Laundrie was later named as a person of interest in Petito’s disappearance.
Petito’s body was found on September 19, 2021, in Wyoming. An autopsy confirmed that she died from ‘blunt force head injuries, with manual strangulation.’ A diary note from Laundrie described how he ‘ended her life’ to relieve her pain.
Laundrie’s body was found on October 20, 2021, in the Carlton Memorial Reserve. His death was ruled a suicide from a gunshot wound to the head.
A judge awarded Petito’s family $3 million in a wrongful death lawsuit they filed in 2022 against Laundrie’s estate. Another lawsuit they filed against Laundrie’s parents, for intentional and reckless infliction of emotional distress, was also settled in 2024.
American Murder: Gabby Petito is available for streaming on Netflix.
