Brian Laundrie ‘lookalike’ ambushed by U.S. Marshals in North Carolina cabin
Global News
Federal agents are still on the hunt for Gabby Petito's fiancé, who so far has managed to elude authorities.
A Brian Laundrie lookalike was ambushed by a team of U.S. Marshals in a North Carolina cabin he was staying in with his girlfriend as federal agents continue the hunt for the missing man.
Laundrie remains a person of interest in the homicide of his fiancée, 22-year-old Gabby Petito, whose remains were found in Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest in mid-September. A medical examiner confirmed that Petito died from strangulation. Laundrie, 23, hasn’t been seen since Sept. 13, according to his parents, authorities say.
The Laundrie lookalike, Severin Beckwith, along with his girlfriend, Anna Brettmann, was staying at the Lodge at Fontana Village Resort along the Appalachian Trail. (Several tips and reports have placed Laundrie on the large, remote hiking trail, though there has been no corroboration of any sighting.)
Beckwith and Brettman were relaxing in their cabin following lunch when a group of U.S. Marshals burst in, according to the New Yorker.
“Next thing I see is a bunch of guys with riot shields with ‘U.S. Marshals’ written on them, handguns pointed at my face,” said Beckwith to the publication. He was handcuffed and pulled aside, he claimed.
The U.S. Marshals showed Beckwith a photo of himself that had been taken by a Lodge employee and sent to authorities. Both Laundrie and Beckwith are white with a similar slim build and both have shaved heads and beards. One marshal even pointed to Beckwith’s left ear, which had a “notch” similar to Laundrie’s.
Adding to the suspicion, Beckwith and Brettmann had booked the cabin with a credit card connected with a New York ID — and Petito was originally from Long Island.
Ultimately, after some further examination by the marshals, Beckwith was released. He presented his personal identification to verify his name, and he also didn’t have the same tattoos as Laundrie.