The fiancé of a woman whose body was found one month after she was reported missing was indicted for taking a total of at least $1,000 from multiple bank accounts following her death.
According to the indictment filed Wednesday in the U.S. District Court of Wyoming, Brian Laundrie, 23, "knowingly and with intent to defraud," used at least one "unauthorized access devices," to pull funds from two accounts using a personal identification number.
The indictment says Laundrie withdrew the cash sometime between Aug. 30 and Sept. 1. This timeline of events regarding the couple's road trip explains more about the events leading up to Petito's disappearance.
“If you look at what the bureau, the FBI was trying to do here, they want a reason to hold him,” said Jack Rice, a criminal defense attorney, former prosecutor and former federal agent.
Rice said the charges might seem small given the circumstances, but Laundrie can now be put under arrest if he is found by any law enforcement agency.
“The benefit of a warrant is that it goes nationwide, meaning it’s not just about the FBI arresting somebody, it’s actually any law enforcement personnel who comes upon that person," he said. "They want as many hands and as many boots on the ground as they can possibly get.”
Greg Rogers, a retired FBI agent who lives in Sandy, is confident they’ll find him.
“If he’s still alive, we’re going to catch him” Rogers said.
Rogers said when Laundrie was just a person of interest, law enforcement wouldn’t be able to hold him. Now, Rogers said anyone helping him could face serious consequences.
“They’re going to get charged for aiding and abetting and harboring a fugitive and all that," he said. "There’s a federal indictment, so he’s now a fugitive. They could get in a lot of trouble for that.”
Rice said attorneys and law enforcement are often still building other cases when they bring forward lesser charges, but in this case, use of a debit card could come with considerable consequences.
“This isn’t just a fine. You could go to jail, or technically even prison for something like this," Rice said. "But, lets be honest. This isn’t about credit cards. This is about finding this man, trying to determine if he is responsible for the death of a young woman. And that’s what the bureau is using right now.”
Laundrie was on a cross-country road trip with Gabby Petito, 22, shortly before she was reported missing.
He returned home to Florida Sept. 1, Petito's family filed a missing persons report September 11.
She was last seen in Ogden, Utah at a local hotel.
Laundrie's left his parents home in Florida shortly after returning from the trip without Petito.
Investigators entered their fifth day of searching for Laundrie at the Carlton Reserve park nearby.
New documents filed by the U.S. Department of Justice show an arrest warrant was issued for Laundrie Wednesday.
"While this warrant allows law enforcement to arrest Mr. Laundrie, the FBI and our partners across the country continue to investigate the facts and circumstances of Ms. Petito's homicide," a press release published by the USDOJ explains.