# Van lifer goes missing on cross country trip with fiancee **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 13, 2021, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604 "2021-09-13T13:48:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 19
**Author:** ![flurb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@flurb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flurb)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/361 "2021-09-20T21:21:15Z")
People in this thread are acting like “fleeing to Mexico” means entering some sort of scofflaw’s paradise where he can live out his days sipping margaritas. They have law enforcement down there too, and he’d have the same problems trying to stay off the grid that he would here in the U.S. The “affluenza” kid tried it and was caught within two weeks. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/362 "2021-09-20T21:26:53Z")
> [@Oredigger77](#): > > > [@RickJay](#): > > > > More is traceable, the cops are wiser to such tricks, there’s cameras everywhere, communication is far better, it’s much harder to live off the grid. If you really want to be off the grid, you have to BE OFF THE GRID - be a forest hermit or literally sleep under bridges as a homeless person. Drifters can vanish > > Does living in a van moving from dry camping site to dry camping site count as being homeless person and a drifter? It seems he’s already drawn to that lifestyle and it wouldn’t take much to get another van and hit the road. Just don’t use credit cards tied to him or his parents. Pay in cash for gas and other necessities. This gets harder than it seems, especially if you get elevated onto the FBI’s Most Wanted list. Which right now he isn’t but he could end up there. Whitey Bulger found a fairly decent way to live off the grid as a fugitive–he was considered the most wanted person on the FBI’s list other than Osama bin Laden, and there was a task force dedicated to finding him. Bulger had **way** more resources than this kid though, he was a leader of an organized crime outfit and had tons of underworld connections and he had cashed and property setup specifically for going on the lam. He had professionally done fake documents–he actually traveled to Europe multiple times while a fugitive, but his primary residence was in Santa Monica, California. He lived in a condo basically setup for the purpose of him ever needing to live on the lam, and he had over $800,000 in cash inside when he was apprehended. He had nothing in his name or even any of his assumed names. And he did all of his transactions in cash. He did not drive, going via cab everywhere–which is actually very smart, traffic stops are a huge vector for getting noticed by police. It’s actually really hard to do this, and I think it is unlikely this kid has anywhere near those resources. AFAICT most people on the FBI 10 Most Wanted List, as a good example of “successful fugitives”, who have been on there for any length of time–very likely are not in United States. Take for example Jason Brown, who is often shown in pictures as a “party boy” (infamous wanted photos of him show him shirtless partying on a boat), was a Mormon missionary in his younger days and spoke fluent French and Spanish. He was almost certainly out of the country long before the manhunt for him went Federal, and with his extensive experience traveling abroad and fluency in two languages spoken in a good number of countries, he very likely established a life for himself in such a country that doesn’t extradite with a fake identity (much easier to establish in some places than in the United States.) He also had the benefit of a lot of cash. If this guy got out of the country before the police were wise to him, that’s his best chance at long term evasion. But I’m not seeing firm evidence he comes from a family of that sort of means, and he certainly wasn’t wealthy himself, he lived in a van that he didn’t even own. The big barrier to him getting to another country is going to be documentation, he likely could have left the country under his own name at some point, but if he had done that we’d likely already know about it and have records of it. But the window for that has now closed. Taking a boat to another country is kind of fanciful without serious boating experience, and many countries he could easily get to wouldn’t have any real problem sending an American murderer back to the states. Cuba would be his best destination if he was going that route, but getting there with 0 experience as a boater isn’t trivial, not sure he even has easy access to a boat that can make the voyage. Also most fugitives that have gone to Cuba had some sort of link to the island, Cuba isn’t a paradise to live in if you don’t speak the language and don’t have family there. He’d be a foreigner in the country illegally, which the Cubans probably wouldn’t like. Most of the American fugitives who have lived there have had tacit approval of the Cuban government for various reasons, this guy likely would not–the regime has no real affinity for a random white boy domestic abuser who killed his girlfriend. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 9:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/363 "2021-09-20T21:28:05Z")
Yeah, Mexico is a very bad place to hide unless you have contacts in Mexico that are going to help hide you–contacts most people do not have. Mexico has no real issue extraditing people to the United States, they even extradite their own nationals to the U.S. to face trial on some charges. Like many countries, if the offense is a capital offense, they require a formal guarantee the death penalty won’t be sought, which isn’t usually a big barrier to anything. The death penalty has become so rare it’s basically barely pursued by most prosecutors. ---
**Author:** ![Esprise\_Me](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/esprise_me/32/2947_2.png) [@Esprise\_Me](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esprise_Me)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/364 "2021-09-20T22:23:55Z")
> [@Martin\_Hyde](#): > > But I’m not seeing firm evidence he comes from a family of that sort of means, and he certainly wasn’t wealthy himself, he lived in a van that he didn’t even own. Agreed. The fact that he and his girlfriend were living with his parents is a strong indication to me that they don’t have hide-from-the-feds money. It’s not uncommon for moderately wealthy parents to pay for their young adult children’s homes, whether that means paying some or all of the rent, or even buying a place as an investment and letting the kid live there rent-free or below market rate until they get established professionally. If you do the latter and have some paying tenants in the property too, you can even come out ahead financially. And in the meantime, you get to enjoy your home and your privacy. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/365 "2021-09-20T22:24:11Z")
I was thinking more along the lines of destruction of evidence. ---
**Author:** ![Bijou\_Drains](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bijou_drains/32/2814_2.png) [@Bijou\_Drains](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bijou_Drains)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/366 "2021-09-20T23:09:57Z")
have they checked all the local white Ford broncos owned by a black ex NFL player? ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/367 "2021-09-20T23:36:00Z")
I think the boyfriend committed suicide. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/368 "2021-09-20T23:49:46Z")
It’s definitely a possibility, as feelings of guilt and fear of a life behind bars creep in. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/369 "2021-09-20T23:52:04Z")
I read that book myself. I did find his theory that the Villisca, Iowa axe murder (which the book is based on) and the Hinterkaifeck murders in Germany a decade-plus later may have been committed by the same person a bit out there. ---
**Author:** ![Locrian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/locrian/32/14146_2.png) [@Locrian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Locrian)\ **Post date:** [September 20, 2021, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/370 "2021-09-20T23:52:09Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > I think the boyfriend committed suicide. Me too. I think he killed her, maybe even by accident, and knows he’s in for it. ---
**Author:** ![asahi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asahi/32/8693_2.png) [@asahi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asahi)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/371 "2021-09-21T00:01:36Z")
If he hasn’t offed himself, he’s probably thought long and hard about it. He’s probably scared shitless now. Not that I have sympathy for him ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/372 "2021-09-21T00:06:08Z")
> [@Tibby](#): > > Laundrie was smart to engage an attorney but dumb to go on the lam after doing so. I’m guessing he didn’t like the likely plea deal his attorney discussed and panicked. You’re assuming he’s on the lam. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/373 "2021-09-21T00:22:42Z")
I had my “money” on her being dead. I have my “money” on him running. I have placed my bets. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/374 "2021-09-21T00:25:21Z")
They are searching for him in the Florida swamps near where he lived with his folks. “Where a man can hide and never be found And have no fear of the bayin’ hounds But he better keep movin’ and don’t stand still If the 'skeeters don’t get him then the 'gators will” (According to another headline I just noticed, they’ve given up on that.) > **[Brian Laundrie could hide out in the swamps of the 'vast' Florida reserve...](https://news.yahoo.com/brian-laundrie-could-hide-swamps-124944474.html)** > > The Carlton Reserve has about 80 miles of hiking trails, most of which are currently flooded, according to a warning posted on its website Saturday. ---
**Author:** ![ASL\_v2.0](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asl_v2.0/32/3525_2.png) [@ASL\_v2.0](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ASL_v2.0)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/375 "2021-09-21T00:35:41Z")
I think the point is well made that there is a distinct difference between living off the land (or even as a scavenger) in the Florida wilderness (and having to stay hidden while doing it) versus living in a nice, air-conditioned van with a bed and other comforts in back, and a tent for when it’s nice enough. Oh, an probably an unlimited data plan, too, and no fear of being “discovered.” ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/376 "2021-09-21T00:38:20Z")
The police intervention in Utah was apparently based on a 911 call from a passing driver who witnessed the boyfriend slapping Gabby and feared for her safety: > **[Chilling 911 call reveals Gabby Petito fight with fiancé Brian Laundrie | CNN](https://www.cnn.com/videos/us/2021/09/20/911-call-gabby-petito-brian-laundrie-santiago-tsr-sot-vpx.cnn)** > > Newly obtained audio from a 911 call in Moab, Utah, reveals that Gabby Petito and her fiancé Brian Laundrie were reportedly fighting in their van on the street and a witness called authorities to report the incident. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/377 "2021-09-21T00:45:30Z")
> [@flurb](#): > > People in this thread are acting like “fleeing to Mexico” means entering some sort of scofflaw’s paradise where he can live out his days sipping margaritas. They have law enforcement down there too, and he’d have the same problems trying to stay off the grid that he would here in the U.S. The “affluenza” kid tried it and was caught within two weeks. You’re right of course, but some people do make it work, at least for a while. [Perry March](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murder_of_Janet_March) lived openly in Ajijic, Mexico from about 1998 to 2005, until he was finally extradited and convicted of his wife’s murder. (My parents, who lived in Ajijic for over a decade, knew him and took a perverse pleasure in being friendly with someone they were sure was a murderer; my mother bussed him extravagantly when we talked to him at his restaurant once. I think she was showing off for me.) Of course, the March family was fairly wealthy, Perry’s father already lived in Mexico, and Perry married a local Mexican woman. All of those factors probably helped him evade the law for as long as he did. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/378 "2021-09-21T00:46:28Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > And that was quite a while ago too. Information is so much more proliferated now. Way more people have seen his photo and have cameras in their pockets now. He’d have to be really well hidden for no one to notice. It’s a little tougher since he has short hair but it wouldn’t be hard for him to change his appearance and live in a tent while panhandling. Wear a tutu and quack like a duck and he’s mayor of crazytown. Most people would probably try and avoid him. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/379 "2021-09-21T00:56:00Z")
I believe the police have said they are no longer looking at the nature reserve; they likely have evidence telling them he never went there–I suspect that was a diversionary tactic by the parents. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [September 21, 2021, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604/380 "2021-09-21T01:04:18Z")
I wouldn’t be surprised to see the parents charged for interfering in the investigation. Maybe obstruction of justice? Sending the cops on a wild goose chase in a swamp crosses a line. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604.md?page=18) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/van-lifer-goes-missing-on-cross-country-trip-with-fiancee/950604.md?page=20)