During a press briefing on Tuesday, Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue confirmed that Gabby Petito died of strangulation, weeks after the FBI found her remains in Bridger-Teton National Forest north of Jackson Hole, Wyoming.
The manner of death of the young woman was reported as homicide by Blue last month.
Brian Laundrie, Petito’s fiance and the only person of interest in connection with the case, has not been seen since Sept. 13. There is also an arrest warrant for bank card fraud.
Someone left Petto’s remains in the Wyoming wilderness for three to four weeks, Blue said, without going into detail regarding the impact this may have had upon the autopsy. On Aug. 27, three weeks and two days before her discovery, she was seen alive in public.
“We hereby find the cause and manner of death to be, the cause, death by strangulation, and manner is homicide,” Blue said. “By Wyoming state statute, no other information will be released about the autopsy.”
Petito was not pregnant when she died, and he emphasized that any information regarding a potential suspect would have to come from law enforcement.
The FBI’s Denver Field Office is investigating Petito’s slaying.
