Brian Laundrie‘s mother has claimed that the ‘burn after reading’ letter she wrote to her son was a ‘quirky’ reference to books they loved in an attempt to repair their ‘strained’ relationship, and that it had nothing to do with Gabby Petito‘s murder.
Roberta Laundrie spoke out for the first time about the controversial letter in which she allegedly offered to bring a shovel to help ‘bury the body’ around the time of Petito’s disappearance.
The letter was found in Laundrie’s backpack when his body was located in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in North Port, Florida in October 2021 just weeks after he strangled Petito while on a cross-country summer road trip.
The letter has not been publicly released, but the Petito family attorneys have petitioned to have it included as evidence in their civil suit against the Laundries.
In support of a motion filed on Monday against the letter becoming public, Roberta Laundrie wrote a note, obtained by WFLA, to the court claiming that it was written months before Brian and Gabby even set off on their trip.
Roberta Laundrie (pictured here in June 2022) spoke out for the first time about her letter to son Brian in which she allegedly offers to bring a shovel to help ‘bury the body’ around the time of Gabby Petito ‘s disappearance
The letter was found in Brian Laundrie’s backpack when his body was located in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in October 2021 just weeks after he strangled Petito while on a cross-country road trip
A motion was filed in Sarasota County Circuit Court on Monday by Roberta Laundrie’s attorneys that seeks to block the attempts by Petito’s parents, Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt, to make the ‘burn after reading’ letter admissible as evidence in court.
The civil trial between the two families is set to begin in August.
‘Although I do not know the exact date I wrote the letter, I do know that I wrote it and gave it to Brian before Brian and Gabby left Florida for New York which was on June 2, 2021,’ Roberta said.
Roberta’s lengthy explanation claimed that her letter to Brian was an attempt to repair their strained relationship and that some of the language in the letter was using similar phrases from books they both loved to describe the depth of a mother’s love.
She added that the two books that came to her mind were The Runaway Bunny and Little Bear.
Roberta then claimed that one book ‘Burn After Writing,’ which she said Gabby had given Brian, was often the subject a joke between her and the couple.
She said that book is the reason she wrote ‘burn after reading’ on the envelope that contained the letter to her son.
A motion was filed in Sarasota County Circuit Court on Monday by Roberta Laundrie’s attorneys that seeks to block the attempts by Petito’s parents, Joe Petito and Nichole Schmidt, to make the ‘burn after reading’ letter admissible as evidence in court
Gabby’s parents are suing the Laundrie’s for emotional distress as they claim they knew Brian had killed her. The civil trial between the two families is set to begin in August
She goes on to explain that this particular book contains questions that the reader can respond to in writing and then the back of the book instructs the reader to create a secret book and then destroy by ‘burn after writing.’
‘Brian, Gabby and I often joked about this book and the importance of being able to express yourself,’ she said. ‘If you were embarrassed or simply did not want anyone to know your thoughts or feelings then the book offered the perfect solution by telling you to burn it.’
Roberta continued: ‘This is where my message to Brian came from and I wrote on the cover of the letter for Brian to ‘Burn After Reading.’ In short, I was trying to connect with Brian and repair our relationship as he was planning to leave home – and I had hoped this letter would remind him how much I loved him.’
In her statement to the court, Roberta does admit that her letter did contain references that some would think could be about her son and Petito, but she claims there is ‘no connection’ between her letter and the tragic deaths.
‘While I used words that seem to have a connection with Brian’s actions and his taking of Gabby’s life, I never would have fathomed the events that unfolded months later between Brian and Gabby would reflect the words in my letter.
‘The words in the letter could never have been a comment on that tragic situation as they were written so many months before.
‘My words to Brian were meant to convey my love and support for my son through a light-hearted and quirky reminder that my love for him was not diminished and could not be shaken by the miles of separation we would soon be faced with.’
Roberta Laundrie reportedly wrote an undated letter to her son that she would ‘bring a shovel and bury a body,’ Patrick Reilly, the attorney representing Gabby Petito’s family, said in court on Tuesday. It was marked ‘burn after reading’
Petito, 22, was strangled on a road trip with Laundrie in Wyoming in the summer of 2021
Police and FBI officials retrieved items belonging to Brian Laundrie, including a notebook, near where his body was found in the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park
Patrick Reilly, the attorney representing Gabby Petito’s family, claimed the letter was in the FBI‘s regional office and included details Roberta was also willing to help get Brian ‘out of prison.’
The defense has argued that the letter, while penned by Roberta Laundrie, was undated, and therefore not relevant to the case.
Roberta says claims that the letter was found on Brian’s body were false and that the FBI gathered the letter as evidence before his remains were found and investigators had questioned her and her husband, Chris Laundrie, about it before October 20, 2021.
The case has captivated the nation for nearly two years now as cops scoured the country for a still-at-large Laundrie, who would commit suicide before officers were able to track him down.
When officials finally found the body Petito’s killer in a Florida swamp roughly six weeks after the search began, all that remained were ‘skeletal human remains that were scattered on top of the dirt ground in plain sight.’
A notebook later obtained by authorities from Laundrie’s backpack revealed the 23-year-old – who along with Petito had been chronicling the cross-country excursion on social media – took his own life out of guilt.
Petito’s parents promptly filed a civil suit against Laundries’ parents, and late last year were awarded $3million.
