Search warrant documents connected to a hard drive located in Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie’s van said there was “more and more tension” between them before she disappeared.
The affidavit from police seeking a warrant for the computer storage device offered details that resulted in Petito’s family growing concerned about the young woman’s safety, the New York Post reported Monday.
The document noted Laundrie refused to talk with investigators once Petito’s family reported her missing on September 11, and North Port, Florida, police said they believed the hard drive may have belonged to Petito and could help them find her.
A judge approved the warrant last week in the days before Petito’s likely remains were discovered in Wyoming, the outlet continued:
Detective Daniel Alix wrote in the probable-cause affidavit seeking the warrant that Petito’s mother, Nichole Schmidt, had been in regular contact with her daughter after Gabby and Laundrie left New York on their cross-country road trip. But “during these conversations there appeared to be more and more tension between [Gabby] and Laundrie,” the affidavit states.
There were concerns about Petito’s mental health after a domestic incident between the couple Aug. 12 that involved Moab, Utah, police, the document shows. Petito told cops she had experienced “increased anxiety” during their trip, the affidavit said.
Petito’s supposed final text message to her mother was sent on August 27, according to the document. The date was approximately two days after her family members last spoke with her.
“Can you help Stan, I just keep getting his voicemails and missed calls,” Gabby’s purported message to her mother read.
The reference was to the young woman’s grandfather, however, her mom claimed her daughter never referred to him as “Stan.”
The Teton County Coroner said Sunday officials responded to a report of a body found at Wyoming’s Grand Teton National Park, the area where officers had been searching for Petito.
On Monday, law enforcement swarmed the home of Laundrie’s family while the boyfriend of Petito, named a person of interest in her disappearance, remained missing.
“The FBI is executing a court-authorized search warrant today at the Laundrie residence in North Port, FL relevant to the Gabrielle ‘Gabby’ Petito investigation,” the FBI announced:
The activity took place hours after the North Port Police Department said it was no longer searching the Carlton Reserve for Laundrie, whose family members reported him missing on Friday.
However, the department said Tuesday it had resumed the search at the reserve on the Venice side: