Found Deceased WY - Gabby Petito, Grand Teton National Park #86

[Warwick7]

That's really interesting! Thanks!

Brian Entin--in the comments following the original Twitter post says he contacted Bertilino and asked about the letter, Bertilino responded with, "I do know it's a movie and what she wrote on the cover of a letter to Brian many months before the trip had the title of the movie on there."

Not being a much of a movie fan, I had to google that, but, sure enough, there is a movie named, Burn After Reading, that was released in 2008.

To me, it seems odd that the FBI would arrange for both parties to pick up the deceased children's respective possessions at the same time. That just sounds like borrowing trouble, and it also sounds as if NS was hesitant--at first--when she knew SB would be there. I'm glad the tension level dropped, and that she was eventually comfortable, though.

PR also mentioned the letter was once in the van but seized from the Laundrie's house. Did BL take it inside? Did his parents go through the van and take it inside along with other possessions? Either way, it seems to me that most parents who were in the Laundrie's position--and knew law enforcement was gearing up--would have gone through the possessions/evidence they had access to, and if there was anything incriminating, they would have gotten rid of it. MOO

This whole thing is just too weird. I get the impression as another poster mentioned, that Reilly may be doing a bit of one-upmanship and that when the letter is finally released, it won't be anything of value. MOO

What blew me away is the one-upmanship Bertolino pulled releasing the suicide letter with in 30 minutes of telling NS/PR they couldn't have a copy.

Others were shocked as well.

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[acutename]

I find it odd that the L's attorney would be in possession of a letter from Brian's mother to Brian that said to burn it after reading it.

How could he possibly come to be in possession of such a letter? If Brian's mother wanted it burned, it seems as though she would not be the one to hand it over to the attorney. Did investigators find a letter like that? If so, what are the odds they would hand it over to the L's attorney? If Brian had said letter on his person when he died, and the investigators released his possessions to his parents, which one of them gave the letter to their attorney?

And, if the L's attorney did have such a letter--why would he share that with the P's attorney?

Too many things seem farfetched here.

complete speculation here: if BL had the letter among his effects and investigators found it (or it was on his phone or a computer? and investigators found it) they would give it to his parents and/or their atty. In discovery, if the the Ps asked for these items/documents, from investigators and the Ls/their atty, they would be legally required to produce it. Once the investigators have seen it, it is "not a secret" and they could not hide it or destroy it.

 

[LinasK]

What blew me away is the one-upmanship Bertolino pulled releasing the suicide letter with in 30 minutes of telling NS/PR they couldn't have a copy.

Others were shocked as well.

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Yeah, Roberta knew. Brian told at least her.

 

[GRT]

Yeah, Roberta knew. Brian told at least her.

I am of the opinion that he didn't tell her, but it will be interesting to see what--if anything--comes of this civil case.

 

[LinasK]

I am of the opinion that he didn't tell her, but it will be interesting to see what--if anything--comes of this civil case.

Why would she be offering to help him otherwise?

 

[ajksmom]

What blew me away is the one-upmanship Bertolino pulled releasing the suicide letter with in 30 minutes of telling NS/PR they couldn't have a copy.

Others were shocked as well.

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I thought NS/PR requested a copy of RLs letter to Brian not the suicide note…

 

[NCWatcher]

Why would she be offering to help him otherwise?

Part of the problem is we don't know when the undated typed letter was written. So we don't know why RL would offer to help BL but most offers of help from a parent don't involve murder. IMO it's quite possible she was offering to help him if he broke off the relationship with GP. An awful lot of people seemed to know it was toxic so RL might have too. Or it it could have been about something unrelated to GP but since they were a couple, she would be affected too. Really, it could have been about anything.

I know PR says he thinks the letter was written after GP died. But he admits that's based on a gut feeling. So no clear evidence of the date except that PR also claims it had been in the van but was found in the house. How he could know it had been in the van is unclear. But if he's correct, the letter had to be delivered before Sept 11. But why write to BL IF RL knew he was coming home after GP died assuming she knew all that as the P's claim? Why not just talk to him? Go on a bike ride or run errands if she didn't want to talk around CL. But if she wrote BL after Aug 27 how and when did he get the letter?
JMO

 

[Wallendo]

At the time of the FBI meeting, the lawsuit was not in discovery phase, and the lawyers had no obligation to share information.

What does surprise me is that the P's lawyer didn't try to stop the release of BL's documents to his parents. They are suing his estate and could argue his possessions are part of the estate. I am sure the FBI has copies in their files, however, so it is unlikely important documents (if there are any) would be destroyed.

 

[GRT]

Why would she be offering to help him otherwise?

On the comments on Brian Entin's Twitter feed, Brian posts that SB claims the letter in question--from BL's mother--was written months earlier. She could have been offering to help him in any number of ways. It sounds as though the letter will eventually be released, so we might be in for a surprise. MOO

 

[ktm44]

At this point, we don't know what she offered as help or when the letter was written. Certainly, it could have been written after BL returned home or it could also have been written after the incident in Moab. I think most parents would want their adult children out of a relationship that had gotten to that point, regardless of what story her son created for their benefit.
In the event that she did know or came to conclude her son killed Gabby and offered assistance, that speaks to her both her (blind) maternal loyalty to her son as well as her ethics.

I have always been of the opinion that BL did not immediately tell his parents what happened but I've also strongly felt that at some point, they became aware that his story did not add and starting asking harder questions.

Something caused him to flee his parent's home and I feel that is about the time his parents started asking hard questions and either leaned the full truth or he departed with them strongly suspecting the truth.

I'd be interested in knowing more about the letter because I've always felt that if his parents went to the trouble of searching for him in the preserve, I felt that most mothers would have left some kind of note with the car, hoping he'd come back and find it and feel safe enough to return home.

 

[LinasK]

Part of the problem is we don't know when the undated typed letter was written. So we don't know why RL would offer to help BL but most offers of help from a parent don't involve murder. IMO it's quite possible she was offering to help him if he broke off the relationship with GP. An awful lot of people seemed to know it was toxic so RL might have too. Or it it could have been about something unrelated to GP but since they were a couple, she would be affected too. Really, it could have been about anything.

I know PR says he thinks the letter was written after GP died. But he admits that's based on a gut feeling. So no clear evidence of the date except that PR also claims it had been in the van but was found in the house. How he could know it had been in the van is unclear. But if he's correct, the letter had to be delivered before Sept 11. But why write to BL IF RL knew he was coming home after GP died assuming she knew all that as the P's claim? Why not just talk to him? Go on a bike ride or run errands if she didn't want to talk around CL. But if she wrote BL after Aug 27 how and when did he get the letter?
JMO

I find it bizarre that a parent of an adult child would need to help them break off a relationship. And why would that necessitate the phrase "Burn after you read" on the envelope? We heard about a reference to giving him a file to break out of jail. I find it far more likely that his mother knew that he was in serious trouble, and it fits with their pattern of blocking the Petito family.

 

[NCWatcher]

I find it bizarre that a parent of an adult child would need to help them break off a relationship. And why would that necessitate the phrase "Burn after you read" on the envelope? We heard about a reference to giving him a file to break out of jail. I find it far more likely that his mother knew that he was in serious trouble, and it fits with their pattern of blocking the Petito family.

Maybe you are right. I don't think so but obviously there's lots we don't know (including who did or didn't block phone #s. That hasn't been proven yet.)

Personally I think it's very possible the "burn after you read" was an inside joke or was just a lighthearted way to indicate it was a private letter. (And being lightheaded was fine. We have no idea when the letter was written.) The phrase may have related to that movie, or may not have. It's not an original phrase/idea, after all. While it's not the sort of thing I'd write, people write and say all kinds of things-- for example, I have heard people say "I'm going to kill you if you don't stop doing X" or "I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you" and I certainly didn't think any of the speakers intended to kill anyone.

I can't imagine anyone would put in writing anything so sensitive the writer would feel it necessary to request the document be burned after reading. And if the writer thought it was sensitive material, would that request be enough to make the writer feel comfortable? Especially since there are other ways to communicate these days besides letters. It's not the 1500s. (And at any rate, it wasn't burned suggesting to me it was a joke.)

I can think of plenty of reasons a mother might offer assistance and/or advice to her 23-year old son. And until this case came along, I'd never have thought the advice related to a murder. Help breaking away from a toxic relationship? Yeah, I can imagine offering advice on that. And in this case, GP lived in the L's house with BL. How could BL break up with her under those circumstances? He couldn't just tell her to leave even if he wanted to. Or if the letter was written after Moab, there would have been difficulties with BL leaving GP alone out west in a van she reportedly felt uncomfortable driving. (Although I personally think it's more likely the letter was from earlier as SB said.) And while I don't agree that BL was a "mama's boy" I do think both he and GP were "young for their chronological ages." The court filing from the P's said GP called her parents "almost daily" during the trip. So I do think both GP and BL probably got parental assistance and advice more often than many 20-somethings do.

So far as the cake and saw go, it's not clear to me if the letter said that or if that was an hypothetical example offered by PR (who declined to give specifics since he didn't have a copy of the letter.) From

Brian Laundrie's mom 'offered to assist him,' Petito lawyer says

Patrick Riley, the lawyer for Gabby Petito's parents says that Brian Laundrie's mother wrote a letter to her son offering to help him after he strangled his girlfriend during a VanLife tour of the U.S.

www.dailymail.co.uk

"Riley declined to fully describe the correspondence, saying that he did not want to misquote it."

"He said that though he has read the letter, he does not have a copy of it, but has requested it for the purposes of the lawsuit."

"There was also something referenced in that letter about Gabby and I'd rather not go into it any further at this point. The letter will speak for itself.'

"It was not an offer by the mom to help Brian commit suicide, the lawyer clarified."

'It was an offer that had to do with Gabby,' he said."

At any rate, does anyone really think RL thought she could walk into a jail with a cake? (With or without a saw in it.) And that if she could, and BL was in jail and got a saw that way, he could saw his way through the jail bars and escape? It seems extremely unlikely in the 21th century an educated American businesswoman in her 50s would think that.

JMO

 

[Warwick7]

I thought NS/PR requested a copy of RLs letter to Brian not the suicide note…

He knew about the letter from RL to BL. Reilly states Bertilino didn't. He also stated Bertilino looked shocked as he read it.

He also knew there was more in BL's note book. And also stated there were "other" confessions.

And yes, they wanted a copy of that letter and Bertilino refused.

 

[Warwick7]

Maybe you are right. I don't think so but obviously there's lots we don't know (including who did or didn't block phone #s. That hasn't been proven yet.)

Personally I think it's very possible the "burn after you read" was an inside joke or was just a lighthearted way to indicate it was a private letter. (And being lightheaded was fine. We have no idea when the letter was written.) The phrase may have related to that movie, or may not have. It's not an original phrase/idea, after all. While it's not the sort of thing I'd write, people write and say all kinds of things-- for example, I have heard people say "I'm going to kill you if you don't stop doing X" or "I could tell you but then I'd have to kill you" and I certainly didn't think any of the speakers intended to kill anyone.

I can't imagine anyone would put in writing anything so sensitive the writer would feel it necessary to request the document be burned after reading. And if the writer thought it was sensitive material, would that request be enough to make the writer feel comfortable? Especially since there are other ways to communicate these days besides letters. It's not the 1500s. (And at any rate, it wasn't burned suggesting to me it was a joke.)

I can think of plenty of reasons a mother might offer assistance and/or advice to her 23-year old son. And until this case came along, I'd never have thought the advice related to a murder. Help breaking away from a toxic relationship? Yeah, I can imagine offering advice on that. And in this case, GP lived in the L's house with BL. How could BL break up with her under those circumstances? He couldn't just tell her to leave even if he wanted to. Or if the letter was written after Moab, there would have been difficulties with BL leaving GP alone out west in a van she reportedly felt uncomfortable driving. (Although I personally think it's more likely the letter was from earlier as SB said.) And while I don't agree that BL was a "mama's boy" I do think both he and GP were "young for their chronological ages." The court filing from the P's said GP called her parents "almost daily" during the trip. So I do think both GP and BL probably got parental assistance and advice more often than many 20-somethings do.

So far as the cake and saw go, it's not clear to me if the letter said that or if that was an hypothetical example offered by PR (who declined to give specifics since he didn't have a copy of the letter.) From

Brian Laundrie's mom 'offered to assist him,' Petito lawyer says

Patrick Riley, the lawyer for Gabby Petito's parents says that Brian Laundrie's mother wrote a letter to her son offering to help him after he strangled his girlfriend during a VanLife tour of the U.S.

www.dailymail.co.uk

"Riley declined to fully describe the correspondence, saying that he did not want to misquote it."

"He said that though he has read the letter, he does not have a copy of it, but has requested it for the purposes of the lawsuit."

"There was also something referenced in that letter about Gabby and I'd rather not go into it any further at this point. The letter will speak for itself.'

"It was not an offer by the mom to help Brian commit suicide, the lawyer clarified."

'It was an offer that had to do with Gabby,' he said."

At any rate, does anyone really think RL thought she could walk into a jail with a cake? (With or without a saw in it.) And that if she could, and BL was in jail and got a saw that way, he could saw his way through the jail bars and escape? It seems extremely unlikely in the 21th century an educated American businesswoman in her 50s would think that.

JMO

When you wrote "Personally I think it's very possible the "burn after you read" was an inside joke or was just a lighthearted way to indicate it was a private letter." I agree with you.

I think this is why it was left in the van and at a later date brought into the house, only later to be taken by LE due to one of the warrants.

PR never called the letter incriminating. He had called the letter odd, contained extreme things and there is an “offer” from Roberta to “assist her son.”

He also stated that if Bertilino was wanting to be so transparent, then why don't he release the letter. Good question.

 

[Sundog]

When you wrote "Personally I think it's very possible the "burn after you read" was an inside joke or was just a lighthearted way to indicate it was a private letter." I agree with you.

I think this is why it was left in the van and at a later date brought into the house, only later to be taken by LE due to one of the warrants.

PR never called the letter incriminating. He had called the letter odd, contained extreme things and there is an “offer” from Roberta to “assist her son.”

He also stated that if Bertilino was wanting to be so transparent, then why don't he release the letter. Good question.

If it is true, that the lawyer for the L's had not seen the letter before or known about it, then it wouldn't make sense that he would provide a copy of the letter to the P's attorney. This would be totally inappropriate. He would have to confer with his clients as to how they wanted to proceed. So seems to me that the P's attorney is just grandstanding.

 

[NCWatcher]

If it is true, that the lawyer for the L's had not seen the letter before or known about it, then it wouldn't make sense that he would provide a copy of the letter to the P's attorney. This would be totally inappropriate. He would have to confer with his clients as to how they wanted to proceed. So seems to me that the P's attorney is just grandstanding.

Exactly. And given that SB is not representing the L's in the case brought against them by the P's, it would have been wholly inappropriate for SB to turn over any documents for that reason too.
JMO

 

[Warwick7]

HLN to Investigate Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, Gabby Petito & More in New Specials

HLN Investigates, a new series of investigative specials on the most topical events in true crime, will examine the cases of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell, Sherri Papini, and Gabby Petito in its 2022 slate. Check out more information and premiere dates for the upcoming specials now!

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HLN to Investigate Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, Gabby Petito & More in New Specials​

 

[ktm44]

I find it bizarre that a parent of an adult child would need to help them break off a relationship. And why would that necessitate the phrase "Burn after you read" on the envelope? We heard about a reference to giving him a file to break out of jail. I find it far more likely that his mother knew that he was in serious trouble, and it fits with their pattern of blocking the Petito family.

What makes you believe that the letter was help to end a relationship? Perhaps it was nothing more than a letter letting them know that she thought both of them were terrific people but not a terrific couple.

I've always had a firm rule about not getting involved in my adult children's relationships, right up until my daughter was involved in an extremely toxic relationship and each time she broke it off, there was another suicide attempt, another trip to hospital and another attempt to make things work.

I quietly sat her down and explained to her that this was not good for her, not a healthy relationship and if she needed a place to 'hide out' for a while, she could stay with me and I would suggest that any responsible parent would counssel their adult children to reconsider a relationship that is toxic.

If that were the contents of RL's letter, it would have been best if her son had heeded her advice and there is a strong chance both Gabby and Brian would be alive today.

 

[Warwick7]

What makes you believe that the letter was help to end a relationship? Perhaps it was nothing more than a letter letting them know that she thought both of them were terrific people but not a terrific couple.

I've always had a firm rule about not getting involved in my adult children's relationships, right up until my daughter was involved in an extremely toxic relationship and each time she broke it off, there was another suicide attempt, another trip to hospital and another attempt to make things work.

I quietly sat her down and explained to her that this was not good for her, not a healthy relationship and if she needed a place to 'hide out' for a while, she could stay with me and I would suggest that any responsible parent would counssel their adult children to reconsider a relationship that is toxic.

If that were the contents of RL's letter, it would have been best if her son had heeded her advice and there is a strong chance both Gabby and Brian would be alive today.

BBM
When you look at post #351 this how the OP felt not LinasK.

I too have had this same "conversation" with my daughter, in fact many times.

 

[NCWatcher]

A question was posed by another poster-- I'm paraphrasing but as I read it, the question asked why RL would be offering to help BL unless the offer had to do with GP's murder. In response I hypothesized perhaps RL's letter was written earlier & suggested the toxic relationship should end. The offer of assistance would kick in if BL decided to go in that direction. After all, the couple lived together in the L's house. I don't find that possibility far-fetched at all. And I honestly don't see a big difference between that and the kinds of conversations others are describing here as having with their daughters. Perhaps it's a matter of word choices?

Obviously none of us know what the letter said or when it was written. But I do think there are lots of possible circumstances that could have prompted RL to write to BL and mention GP. And for me, helping BL cover up GP's murder is at the bottom of the list of likely scenarios. (Actually for me, it wouldn't even be on the list.)
JMO