Gabby Petito’s cause of death was strangulation, coroner says

Gabby Petito, who was on a road trip across the United States, was strangled to death, according to Thursday statements from Dr Brent Blue, a Wyoming coroner.

Petito, 22, died three to four weeks before her body was found on September 19 near an undeveloped camping area along the border of Grand Teton National Park in remote northern Wyoming, Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue said in a news conference.

However, Blue declined to give out details about Petito’s autopsy saying that the state’s law limited the information coroners can share publicly, Associated Press reported.

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In a similar press conference earlier this year, Blue categorised the 22-year-old’s death as a homicide, which means she was killed by another person. However, due to pending results from the autopsy, the cause of her death was not revealed.

According to reports from CNN, Blue said that the investigation “was pretty much covered all the bases” as it included forensic anthropologist, forensic pathology, toxicology analysis and a full-body CT scan.

It was not clear if the determination might lead to additional charges against Petito’s boyfriend and traveling partner, Brian Laundrie, who is considered a person of interest in her disappearance and remains unaccounted for.

Petito had been on a cross-country trip with Laundrie, visiting Colorado, Utah and other states. She was reported missing September 11 by her parents after she did not respond to calls and texts for several days while the couple visited national parks in the West.

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Blue said, “nothing is obvious in a case like this” while announcing the cause of death and added that a “detailed analysis” was conducted to reach the conclusion.

According to AP reports, Blue said little more about Petito’s physical condition — including whether she may have been strangled directly by somebody’s hands, a rope or some other item — but noted when asked that she was not pregnant.