FBI ‘seizes surveillance footage of Brian Laundrie buying burner phone the day he disappeared’

Federal investigators reportedly suspect that Brian Laundrie bought a burner phone at an AT&T store in his hometown of North Port, Florida, on the same day he went missing.

FBI agents seized surveillance footage from the store as reports have surfaced that Laundrie may have visited the location with an older woman on September 14.

It was the same day that his parents last saw him, as they alleged he left to hike at Carlton Reserve and never returned home.

Laundrie’s apparent phone store visit occurred three days after his fiancé Gabby Petito’s family reported her missing. Her body was recovered on September 19 at Bridger Teton National Forest and the county coroner later confirmed she died by homicide.

The North Port AT&T store declined to comment on whether Laundrie and his mother Roberta visited the establishment, telling the Daily Mail, ‘We are not confirming or denying anything and we are not making any statements’. 

However, the Laundries’ attorney, Steven Bertolino told TMZ that the family purchased a new phone but he ‘believes it’s the one Brian left behind at home’ and notes that the ‘FBI is already in possession of it’. 

The new surveillance footage could paint a more clear image for investigators of what took place in the days leading up to Laundrie’s disappearance.

Five days before Petito’s disappearance the Laundrie family went camping together at Fort De Soto, leaving together on September 7, according to Bertolino.

Television personality Dog the Bounty Hunter, who has joined the manhunt for Laundrie, disagrees. On Monday, he claimed Laundrie’s parents left the park on September 8 without their son.

If Dog’s claims are accurate, Brian could have had a week head start before he was named a person of interest on September 15.

However, if he did purchase a burner phone in North Port on September 14, he wouldn’t have had a head start in fleeing.

Bertolino’s confirmation of the family camping trip comes as many are pondering whether Laundrie’s mother could be using a burner phone as the search intensifies for her son, who is the only person of interest in Petito’s death.

When approached by reporters in Tampa, the FBI could not confirm or deny if Roberta Laundrie was using a burner phone.

‘We do not confirm or deny contact with any individual or entity in order to preserve their privacy, as such, we do not confirm or deny the receipt of any tip. We have no additional comment,’ a FBI representative told Shannon Clowe, a 10 Tampa Bay reporter.

When asked about the matter, Bertolino replied, ‘No comment’.

Some Internet sleuths also believe Laundrie is using a burner phone, claiming to have noticed changes made to his Instagram and Spotify accounts since his disappearance.

His Instagram account reportedly went live for three seconds on Monday showing waves and just a peak of an olive green boat, according to Inside Edition. 

The account allegedly unfollowed several people as well. 

There have also been claims online that Brian’s Spotify playlist name changed from ‘Selfconsomption’ to ‘Nomatic Statik’. The playlist was reportedly created after Petito’s disappearance.

The reports of FBI agents seizing footage from the AT&T store come a day after Petito’s parents and stepparents spoke publicly for the first time. They said the 22-year-old van life vlogger was giving them signs and declined to comment on Laundrie.

This is a breaking news story, check back for updates…