Gabby Petito was “off” during her relationship with Brian Laundrie, according to her mom.
Nichole Schmidt looked back on the heartbreaking events that led to the 22-year-old’s murder three years ago, saying that she did notice a shift in Gabby’s behavior before she was found dead at Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest.
“People always ask me, ‘Did you know what was going on? Did you see any red flags?’” Nichole shared in E! News’ exclusive first look at her interview on the CONNECT with Jonathan Mark podcast, premiering Jan. 28. “And what I tell people now is, ‘I didn’t know it at the time. I thought she was just stressed out.’”
According to Nichole, her daughter’s attitude and mood was “bipolar, almost” during her road trip with Brian across the United States.
“It was just anger and aggression,” she recounted. “She would call me up crying.”
During Gabby’s final days, Nichole said the van life influencer “wasn’t herself.”
“She was off,” the matriarch explained, “and that is a red flag.”
By sharing her experience, Nichole hopes to help others avoid another tragedy. Her advice for those who suspect a loved one may be in a domestic violence situation: “Don’t necessarily look at the abuser or who might be an abuser.”
“Look at the actions and the mood of the person that you think, ‘Something’s wrong,’” she continued. “If you gut is telling you that, start asking questions.”
Gabby’s remains were discovered on Sept. 19, 2021, two weeks after her boyfriend Brian arrived back from their road trip alone at his parents’ Florida home. Following an autopsy, her cause of death was determined as homicide by blunt force trauma and strangulation.
Remains belonging to Brian—who disappeared shortly after Nichole reported her daughter missing—were found at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Florida on Oct. 20, 2021. In a nearby journal discovered by investigators, he had confessed in writing to killing Gabby.
“I ended her life,” Brian wrote, according to the FBI. “I thought it was merciful, that it is what she wanted, but I see now all the mistakes I made. I panicked, I was in shock.”
The 23-year-old’s autopsy confirmed that he had died by suicide.
Since Gabby’s death, her mom has continued her fight against the scourge of domestic violence.
“We have to prevent this from happening to other people,” Nichole said at a CrimeCon 2024 panel. “It keeps us strong. Gabby works through us. We can’t not do it. We have to move forward and change the world together.”