A hiker near the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina claims he had a nighttime encounter with Brian Laundrie on Saturday morning, weeks after the fugitive boyfriend of slain Gabby Petito was last seen.
Dennis Davis says he has ‘no doubt’ he encountered Petito’s boyfriend on a deserted road close to the trail close to the Tennessee border – 700 miles away from where the 23-year-old was last seen near his home in North Point, Florida.
Davis, 53, who is an engineer from Florida, says he spoke to a man who waved down his car on Waterville Road, near the Appalachian Trail and close to the border of North Carolina and Tennessee.
He says the man pulled up alongside Davis and made a bizarre request for help as he asked for directions in order to drive west to California using only back roads.
Davis, a dad-of-four, suggested he simply take Interstate 40 which runs east to west across the country from North Carolina all the way to California.
‘There is no doubt in my mind I spoke to Brian Laundrie — none whatsoever,’ Davis told the New York Post.
‘Dog the Bounty Hunter’s daughter sent me an audio file of Brian’s voice and the voice was the same I heard.’
A hiker near the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina claims he had a nighttime encounter with Brian Laundrie on Saturday morning, weeks after the fugitive boyfriend of slain Gabby Petito was last seen in Florida
A small group of around seven people stood in the street directly in front of 31-year-old Cassie Luycx’s home to demand the family speak with police regarding the her 23-year-old brother’s disappearance
Gabrielle Petito, 22, from her Instagram page, is seen with boyfriend Brian Laundrie
The Appalachian trail is believed to be familiar to Laundrie who is thought to have lived outdoors for on his own for months.
Davis’ claims came as protestors gathered outside the Florida home of the older sister of Brian Laundrie on Saturday.
A small group of around seven people stood in the street directly in front of 31-year-old Cassie Luycx’s home to demand the family speak with police regarding the her 23-year-old brother’s disappearance.
‘We want you to start cooperating with law enforcement! Pick up the phone and call the FBI!’ they shouted through a megaphone.
Cassie has kept a low profile following the disappearance and death of Gabby Petito as well as the manhunt for brother Brian.
Attention shifted to her after a family lawyer revealed that she had seen Brian at a campground, together with their parents, on September 6 as well as on the first of the month following his solo return from his cross-country trip.
Prior to Petito’s body being found, Cassie was the only member of the family who had spoken publicly about her disappearance.
She told ABC News that she had not been able to talk to her brother.
‘I wish I could talk to him,’ Cassie said. ‘I know that it’s all because the lawyers, advising them not to say anything.’
The 31-year-old sister of Brian Laundrie, Cassie, is the only member of the family who has spoken publicly about Petito and her brother’s disappearance
Gabby Petitio’s body was found in the Spread Creek campsite in Wyoming on Sunday and the next day her death was ruled a homicide. She is pictured during a police stop in August
Laundrie was last seen more than a week ago and his whereabouts remain unknown. He is pictured during a police stop last month
The hiker who says he met Laundrie on Saturday claims he spoke about being in a fight with a girlfriend.
Davis is currently hiking the Appalachian Trail himself and noted the man he believed to Laundrie acted nervously.
‘He said ‘Man, I’m lost.’ I said ‘What are you trying to find?’ and he said ‘Me and my girlfriend got in a fight but she called me, told me she loves me, and I have to get to California to see her.”
‘I said ‘Well, I-40 is right there and you could take it west to California’ and he said, ‘I’m just going to take this road into California’.
‘He was worried and not making sense,’ Davis added.
He did not immediately recognize him as Laundrie but is certain it was him.
Brian Laundrie, 23, who was reported missing last week, remains a person of interest in the disappearance and death of fiancée Gabby Petito
Despite lighting being poor because of the night, he believes there was enough lighting from the cars headlights to make a positive identification.
The man he believed to be Laundrie was driving a light-colored pickup and was wearing a bandana on his head.
It wasn’t until later, with Davis having looked up photos of the man on his cellphone that he realized whom he had just spoken with.
Davis claims to have made several calls to the FBI and to 911 in the hours after the encounter but frustratingly nobody has yet called him back.
‘Law enforcement is probably getting millions of leads on this guy, but I am not some goofball out there doing drugs in the middle of the night, I am a highly educated professional. ‘And I know that was the guy. There is no doubt about it.
‘We have this lead but no one’s doing anything, not even a phone call.
Davis told Laundrie his best way to head to California would be to take Interstate 40 which runs for more than 2,500 miles from North Carolina
‘Obviously, as a father with a daughter, I want to do whatever I can to help the family find closure and get this guy off the streets,’ Davis said.
Laundrie was last seen on in early September having returned to Florida from a trip across the country without his girlfriend, Long Island native Gabby Petito.
She was reported missing on September 11 and her remains were found later in Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest. An autopsy has ruled her death a homicide.
Laundrie is sole person of interest in the case with a warrant out for his arrest on charges of fraud. He vanished on September 14 but his sudden disappearance was not mentioned to police for a further three days.
The pair had been travelling on a cross-country trip together since July 2, when they left New York. Petito was reported missing on September 11