Gabby Petito’s Mother Has A Message For The Family Of Her Daughter’s Killer

Gabby Petito’s Mother Forgives Her Daughter’s Killer, But Refuses To Forgive His Mother: “You Deserve To Be Forgotten”

On Friday, the mother of Gabby Petito, the woman who was found dead in August 2021, having been allegedly murdered by her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, forgave her daughter’s suspected killer, while speaking harsh words of his mother, Roberta. 

Schmidt was speaking to a crowd at CrimeCon 2024 in  Nashville, Tennessee, almost three years after Laundrie took his own life in a swamp after police launched a missing person investigation into Petito. She never had a chance to face him in court, and gave a victim impact statement to the crowd at the event. 

“I speak for myself here when I say Brian, I forgive you,” said Petito’s mother, Nicole Schmidt. “I needed to release myself from the chains of anger and bitterness, and I refuse to let your despicable act define the rest of my life.”

However, when discussing Laundrie’s mother, she was far less forgiving. 

“As for you, Roberta, and I call you out individually because you are evidently the mastermind that shattered your family and mine with your evil ways, I see no empathy in your eyes,” Schmidt said. “No remorse in your heart and no willingness to take responsibility for your actions.”

“You do not deserve forgiveness,” she said. ”You deserve to be forgotten.”

Petito’s parents alleged in their lawsuit against the Laundries that they were aware that their son had killed their daughter, and were complicit in helping their son conceal it in hopes that he could escape justice. 

In depositions, both of Laundrie’s parents admitted they were concerned about Petito’s welfare, after speaking with their son shortly after the murder via phone. 

However, Petito’s family alleges that Roberta Laundrie was not only aware of Petito’s murder prior to the FBI’s investigation, but, in a letter that was recovered in his notebook, she offered to bring a shovel to help bury the body. 

“If my belief as to the time it was written is accurate, it shows that at least Roberta Laundrie knew of Gabby’s murder before Gabby’s body was located,” Pat Reilly, the Petitos’ attorney, told Fox News at the time, adding that while the letter was undated, “the content of the letter seems to indicate that it was written after Gabby’s death.”

While both Laundries denied knowledge of the crime, they had sent a $25,000 retainer to a leading defense lawyer in  Wyoming prior to the revelations.

When their son’s body was found in October 2021, he was the only suspect in the murder, and a handwritten confession was discovered in a waterproof bag on or near his person.

Petito was the subject of national attention following her disappearance in the late summer of 2021, after she had been posting on social media about a cross-country road trip she had been making with Laundrie. 

When her posts suddenly stopped, following a domestic violence incident in Utah, during which police were called but no arrests were made, her followers and friends feared the worst. 

Tara Petito, Gabby’s stepmother, also spoke at the event, calling Laundrie’s behavior after the murder “evil,” as he went camping with his family, eating s’mores and enjoying himself while the Petitos struggled to find out what had happened to their daughter. 

“Only someone with true evil in their heart would do such a thing,” she said.