Why did Brian Laundrie’s mother write him a ‘burn after reading’ letter, and what did it say?

According to an attorney for Gabby Petito’s parents, the mother of Brian Laundrie ⏤ Petito’s fiancé and admitted killer ⏤ wrote a letter to her son containing references to both getting a shovel and burying a body. The Petito family is currently suing the Laundries for emotional distress related to their daughter’s death, but the Laundries are refusing to turn over the letter in question, insisting that it is irrelevant to the case.

Petito vanished in the late summer of 2021 during a cross-country “van life” journey with Laundrie, which the couple had been documenting via social media. Her remains were later discovered at the Spread Creek Dispersed Camping area in Wyoming shortly after Laundrie had returned to his parents’ home in North Port, Florida. Laundrie subsequently fled law enforcement after being named a person of interest in the investigation and his remains were found in Florida’s Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park. According to the FBI, a notebook found near his body contained Laundrie’s admission that he had murdered Petito.

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During a remote hearing in Sarasota County Circuit Court, the Petitos’ attorney, Patrick Reilly, said that he had viewed the letter in question at an FBI regional office and that it contained “damning” statements including “helping him [Brian] get out of prison, getting a shovel and some other things,” as reported by CNN. The envelope containing the letter also had the instruction “Burn after reading” written on it, alluding to the possibility that Laundrie’s mother tried to help her son bury Petito’s body.

According to CNN, Laundrie’s parents’ lawyer, P. Matthew Luka, contends that the letter is irrelevant to the Petitos’ suit because it “pre-dates Brian and Gabby’s trip, so its creation really doesn’t have any relation necessarily to the unfortunate events that unfolded thereafter.” Luka went on to say, “I know that some of the wording that was used in the letter is unfortunate and might suggest that it has some connection, but it doesn’t.”

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The judge in the case, Danielle Brewer, seemed to disagree, saying, “I don’t see how it wouldn’t be relevant to the action,” as per CNN. The Petitos will ask for the letter again in the case’s discovery process.

The case in question alleges that the Laundries inflicted intentional emotional distress on the Petitos during the time Gabby was missing by refusing to answer calls or texts. The trial is currently scheduled for August.