Dog the Bounty Hunter is on the case—the Gabby Petito and Brian Laundrie case.
On late Saturday afternoon, Sept. 25, reality star Duane Chapman was spotted walking up and knocking on the front door of the North Port, Fla. home of Christopher Laundrie and Roberta Laundrie, the parents of the missing man named a person of interest in the disappearance of his fiancé, who was found dead last weekend in Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming. Brian, 23, and Gabby, 23, had lived with his mom and dad in the house before they embarked on a cross-country road trip, after which he returned alone.
No one answered the door when Dog the Bounty Hunter knocked and he left the property after a few minutes, as seen in a video captured by NBC affiliate WFLA-TV.
"We have received an avalanche of tips on the whereabouts of Brian Laundrie," Dog told E! News in a statement on Sunday, Sept. 26. "We appreciate the public's assistance and have received a number of leads that are consistent. There is a remarkable amount of information being shared from neighbors, friends and people who may have very recently seen Brian."
He continued, "For those close to Brian, I'd like to restate our goal is to capture him alive. His best chance is if we bring him in. If family and friends want to help Brian, they will help us locate him so we can help end this peacefully."
Dog told Fox News Digital that he was already in Florida on a honeymoon with his new wife Francie Chapman when people began reaching out to him to look into Brian's disappearance.
The bounty hunter is a father of 13, who lost a daughter around the same age as Gabby in a car accident in 2006. He told Fox News Digital, "I know what the victims feel like."
The FBI and local police have been searching for Brian since his parents told police on Sept. 17 that they hadn't seen him since Sept. 14, three days after Gabby's parents reported her disappearance and 13 days after he returned alone to the Florida home they shared with his parents. Her family has said through their lawyer that they believe "Brian is not missing, he is hiding."
Last week, Dog shared his thoughts about Brian's disappearance in an interview with Newsweek. "A lot of times they say he's out of state when he's right there in his hometown, you know," he said. "You got to start with his friends, family members, find out where [have] they gone? When's the last time they saw him? What kind of vehicle is he in? There's all kinds of ways to track that vehicle. I mean, now the investigation is really kicked into high gear."
Brian disappeared soon after police named him a person of interest in the case following his return home. He previously refused to speak to authorities, while his family's lawyer said on Sept. 15, "In my experience, intimate partners are often the first person law enforcement focuses their attention on in cases like this and the warning that 'any statement will be used against you' is true, regardless of whether my client had anything to do with Ms. Petito's disappearance."
Gabby's death has been ruled a homicide and while Brian has not been named a suspect in her killing, a federal grand jury recently indicted him for unauthorized use of a debit card after she died. A federal warrant for his arrest has been issued.
As for Brian's parents, after Gabby was confirmed dead, his mother and father issued a statement through their lawyer that simply read, "May Gabby Rest In Peace."