Van camper Gabby Petito missing

[crofter]

And besides a healthy crime rate, desert hazards prompt warnings at Arches NP.
-crofter

https://www.nps.gov/arch/planyourvisit/safety.htm

 

[user 423]

Meanwhile, women who aren't young, attractive and white go missing nearly every day and never get mentioned on the news.

Right. This is another instance of Missing White Woman Syndrome for the media.

 

[Scorpion Regent]

Basically in such a situation even an innocent person should have a lawyer before they talk to the police. That is what happened and it does not imply either obstruction or cooperation to have legal representation. Non cooperation could simply be the advice given by the attorney. 

That's what I thought I said, but then again I had to translate my statement from english to gibberish and back to english.  Clearly something got lost in translation.

 

[Scorpion Regent]

One thing people should be aware of, is that if a person is going to have a psychotic or schizo-affective episode, it usually happens in late teens or early 20's.

Hell it worked for me.  Rather than accept reality I took a post adolescent sabbatical in the sovereign state of insanity.     

But seriously , I hope she's okay too.  It's a terrible thing to be lost.

 

[Scorpion Regent]

@CG
If she was in a psychiatric hospital the cops would know, due to the court process involved in commitment.
-crofter

Not every one in need of mental help get's it.  Courts only commit those who are considered a danger to themselves or others.  There are plenty of homeless who aren't committed.  Right now she could be just one more lost soul out there alone and frightened.
 I really hope she is okay, I said it before, I know.

 

[RVTravel]

The boyfriend has refused to cooperate with authorities. He is now a person of interest. New York Post has good articles on this.

https://nypost.com/search/petito/

 

[Calaverasgrande]

@CG
If she was in a psychiatric hospital the cops would know, due to the court process involved in commitment.
-crofter

I knew several people that disappeared on their loved ones around her age. Only to be found later living in the streets or having been taken in by a stranger.  Having a mental health episode doesn't automatically land you in a psychiatric hospital.
That usually only happens if your family commits you, or you have an encounter with police.
LOTS of people slip through the cracks in this country. A large number of homeless would be best served by being in a mental health institution.
Of course I am just speculating here. Any number of things may have occurred. But we are conditioned by hollywood and news media to expect morbid outcomes.
I would like to add that having a mental health episode is not a one way street. One of my friends who went off in the weeds in her early 20's after her mom passed away. Now she is now sober, raising a daughter and working as a teacher. She's also an absolute supernova of positivity.

 

[tx2sturgis]

It's even possible the BF was a witness to something...bad. And is now afraid of something...equally bad. 

Or it could be an 'alien abduction' and he is signing a huge blockbuster movie deal as we speak!

We just have no way of knowing and we will all be guessing until the facts come out.

 

[WanderingRose]

It is somewhat unfair to villainize the boyfriend, tho difficult to understand why he would have driven back to Florida without her and not know anything of the where/what/why of her disappearance.

If she disappeared in Wyoming, absent his assistance, wouldn’t he have reported her missing there and aided in the search?

If she left voluntarily, wouldn’t he just state that?

His silence speaks to something, and not something good.

IMHO

 

[gsfish]

^ "why he would have driven back to Florida without her"

In HER van!

Guy

 

[tx2sturgis]

Yeah we just don't know.

Innocent until proven guilty, and we have to be careful of 'trial by media'...

They have published a clip of police body-cam footage after a stop and it shows Gabby upset over an argument in the van. Apparently she slapped him and witnesses called the police.

He is not looking like the 'good guy' in this. But we just don't know.

 

[Scorpion Regent]

^  "why he would have driven back to Florida without her"

In HER van!

Guy

I'm sure that's what the cops asked him.

 

[PlethoraOfGuns]

The road life ain't for everyone. Sometimes living together in such a small space can induce certain mental conditions. Maybe he dumped her body in a ravine. Maybe she freaked out and just walked away. Maybe they saw something that caused a fracture in their bliss. Or maybe they witnessed or did something terrible. Strange that their lil fight happened at the business of that couple that was found murdered just two days later. This may not be a simple missing persons case. We'll just have to see how it all plays out.

 

[vgilbert]

I hope this is just a publicity or attention grabbing stunt gone wrong and Gabby will turn up safe and healthy.
But..... my fear is just the opposite. If the BF killed her and left her body in a remote area around Yellowstone / Grand Tetons it may take a long time to discover. During that time bears, wolves, etc are surely to scatter the remains and the cause of death may be impossible to prove. 

I know this sounds morbid but maybe that is why the BF is not talking. Time is on his side if he left her body to wild animals.....

 

[user 423]

I hope this is just a publicity or attention grabbing stunt gone wrong....

With the National Park Service, the FBI and 6 different police departments looking for her, it would sure be a huge waste of resources if that is what it turns out to be.

 

[rvwandering]

I'm closing this thread. It doesn't seem right or fair to any of the people involved to be speculating when we only have a few tidbits of information.