Gabby Petito's Mom Shares Bombshell 'Information' About Brian Laundrie's Parents' Alleged Attempt To Protect Him

Yahoo

22-04-2025

Gabby Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, has made new claims about her late daughter's killer, Brian Laundrie, and his family.
During a podcast appearance, Schmidt said that Brian's room was completely renovated while Gabby was presumed missing by the police.
Gabby Petito's mother has since accused Roberta Laundrie of lacking remorse and being the "mastermind" behind shielding her son, Brian Laundrie.
In an appearance on Taylor Lautner and his wife Tay's podcast, "The Squeeze," Gabby Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, made a startling revelation while recounting the events surrounding her daughter's disappearance.
Sharing "new information" she had only just learned, Schmidt claimed that someone who had been inside the Laundrie family home while Brian Laundrie was reportedly "missing" claimed that his bedroom had been entirely cleared out and renovated.
"I actually just found out some new information a few days ago," she said, per the New York Post. "There was — I actually don't know their name, which is better — that was at the house when Brian was missing and — I would say he was hiding, he wasn't missing, but he was actually dead — but his room was completely gutted and renovated. None of his things were there anymore. It was gone."
Schmidt added: "Cops were going to their house to try to get, I guess, a scent from their dogs to look for Brian, all his things were gone. The room was completely empty, just gone."
According to Schmidt, the unidentified person expressed serious concern about Roberta Laundrie's behavior, describing her as visibly unwell.
"They said that there's something wrong with that mother, she's clearly not mentally well, and I'm like that's just add it to the list because I didn't even know about that," she recalled.
Schmidt also expressed her ongoing frustration, saying she often feels helpless when thinking about ways to hold the Laundries accountable.
She shared that it drives her "absolutely insane" when she tries to think of any way to make them "pay for what they did."
"There is really nothing I can do," Schmidt noted.
Despite the pain of her daughter's passing, Schmidt shared a powerful message of healing while speaking at CrimeCon 2024 in Nashville.
Standing before the audience, she said, "I speak for myself here when I say, Brian, I forgive you."
Schmidt continued, "I needed to release myself from the chains of anger and bitterness, and I refuse to let your despicable act define the rest of my life."
Even though she forgave Brian, Schmidt didn't hold back when addressing his mother, Roberta.
She accused her of being the driving force behind a calculated effort to shield her son after Petito's death.
"Roberta, and I call you out individually because you are evidently the mastermind that shattered your family and mine with your evil ways, I see no empathy in your eyes," Schmidt said. "No remorse in your heart and no willingness to take responsibility for your actions."
Schmidt and her family have long believed the Laundries knew Brian had killed Petito and actively helped him avoid facing consequences.
According to court depositions, both Roberta and Chris Laundrie admitted they became concerned about Gabby's well-being after Brian called home acting strangely in the days following the murder.
Brian eventually returned alone to Florida, driving the van he and Gabby had traveled in. Her remains were later discovered in Wyoming, where he had left her behind.
According to the Daily Mail, Roberta wrote a letter to her son Brian, seemingly offering to help him "bury a body."
The undated note, labeled "burn after reading," was discovered in Brian's backpack after his remains were found at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Florida.
He died by suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound after confessing to Petito's murder in a notebook found alongside his remains.
Attorney Patrick Reilly, who represented the Petito family, revealed in court that the letter was in FBI custody and contained chilling language indicating Roberta's willingness to help her son evade prison.
She allegedly wrote that she would "bring a shovel" and assist in hiding a body.
Although Roberta claims the letter was written before Gabby and Brian left on their trip, Petito's family said the content left them "sick to their stomach."
Gabby's parents have since taken steps to prevent the white camper van she traveled in with Laundrie from becoming a morbid collector's item.
Speaking to NewsNation, they shared that they decided to have the van destroyed, with her father, Joe Petito, stating, "We crushed the van. We didn't want the van to be out there and someone owning the van and then saying, 'Here's the van that Gabby was…' So, we had it crushed."
Despite this, he and Gabby's stepmother, Tara Petito, retained the gasoline cap and a sticker from the Great Smoky Mountains as personal mementos.
Meanwhile, Gabby's mother, Nichole Schmidt, shared that she has forgiven Laundrie for her daughter's death, stating, "I have forgiven Brian, and I know that's what Gabby would have wanted, and I'm moving forward so that I can help other people."
She added, "I don't think everyone has to forgive. They can when they're ready, or they might never be ready. But for me personally, I needed to forgive to let that anger go."