Gabby Petito's Mom Slams Brian Laundrie's Lawyer After He Called Her Strangulation a 'Tragedy'

The mother of Gabby Petito has reacted to comments made by Brian Laundrie's attorney after Wyoming officials revealed the Long Island, N.Y., woman was strangled to death.

Steven Bertolino, the lawyer retained by the Laundrie family after Brian returned from a cross-country road trip without his 22-year-old fiancée, issued a statement on Tuesday, referring to Petito's death "at such a young age" as a "tragedy."

The statement added: "Brian Laundrie is currently charged with the unauthorized use of a debit card belonging to Gabby," and that the 23-year-old missing man is "only considered a person of interest in relation to Gabby Petito's demise."

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Bertolino's statement concluded that, "at this time, Brian is still missing and when he is located, we will address the pending fraud charge against him."

Later, while speaking to WFLA, Petito's mom, Nichole Schmidt, referenced Bertolino's statement, saying, "His words are garbage."

Schmidt also told Bertolino, "Keep talking."

On Tuesday afternoon, three weeks after Petito's remains were found in Grand Teton National Park, Teton County Coroner Brent Blue revealed she died from manual strangulation.

Days after her body was found, Blue announced that Petito had died by homicide.

According to Blue, Petito's body had been outside for three to four weeks. Blue said Petito was not pregnant at the time that she died.

Petito and Laundrie had embarked on a cross-country journey in July, traveling from Florida to New York in their white Ford van, then heading west. Petito documented their adventures on her YouTube channel and planned to start a blog about their new, so-called "vandwelling" lifestyle.

The couple's travels appeared to be going well until late August, when Petito's mother stopped hearing from her while she was staying in Grand Teton National Park. More than two weeks after their last conversation, Schmidt learned that Laundrie had quietly returned to his parents' Florida home without Petito.

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Petito wasn't reported missing until Sept. 11, 10 days after Laundrie allegedly arrived back in Florida. On Sept. 15, he was named a person of interest in her disappearance.

For the first several days of Petito's missing person case, investigators say they tried unsuccessfully to speak with Laundrie and his parents. They were directed to the family's attorney, who had instructed his clients not to speak.

On Sept. 17, the Laundrie family spoke with the FBI for the first time — but instead of getting answers about Petito's disappearance, investigators say they were informed that Laundrie himself had now gone missing, launching a second missing persons case to locate him.

As of Tuesday, Laundrie has still not been located despite exhaustive searches in a Florida wildlife preserve, where he is believed to have gone hiking on the day that he vanished.

Authorities have yet to name a suspect in Petito's disappearance and homicide.