Nina Celie Angelo, of New Orleans, claimed she had been visiting the area with her boyfriend on August 27 when she witnessed the argument involving Brian Laundrie and a waitress.
Nina Celie Angelo of New Orleans claimed that she was visiting the area on August 27 with her boyfriend when she saw the dispute over the bill.
Ms. Petito was present at the incident and later apologized to her partner for his behavior.
After remains discovered in Grand Teton National Park searching for the YouTuber aged 22 were confirmed to be hers, the FBI has now issued this statement.
The FBI confirmed Tuesday that the body was identified and that a local coroner had ruled Ms. Petito’s death a murder.
Ms. Petito’s family’s lawyer Richard Stafford earlier released a statement thanking the media and public “for giving the Petito and Schmidt family time to grieve,” Business Insider reports.
Brian Laundrie, her partner in the affair, was identified as a person of interest by police. He has since vanished.
Speaking to Fox News, witness to the earlier argument Nina Angelo said she watched on in shock as an agitated Laundrie began arguing with a waitress.
Angelo, a photographer, was reported with Matthew England, her boyfriend, when they stopped by Merry Piglets for lunch sometime between 12:30 and 2 pm on August 27, 2012.
Although she could not hear what was said, she believes the spat was about money or the bill.
The woman described Laundrie’s body language as “aggressive” and said he had left and returned to the restaurant about four times, continuing the argument.
Ms. Petito was reported to have apologized to her partner for his behavior during the incident.
Recalling the incident, she said: “I have chills right now. It’s crazy because it wasn’t just like we passed them on the street — it was a full-blown incident.”
The sighting date was said to have been around the same time Ms. Petito last contacted her friends or family.
Ms. Petito and her partner Brian Laundrie had set out on a cross-country trek across America in July. They were last seen leaving a Utah hotel.
Ms. Petito’s body was discovered on Sunday in a remote area of Bridger-Teton National Forest, in western Wyoming, less than 1,000 feet (300 meters) from where a pair of travel bloggers filmed what appeared to be the couple’s white van parked along a dirt road near Spread Creek on the evening of August 27.
Laundrie returned home from North Port, Florida, alone in the van on September 1. Ten days later, members of Ms. Petito’s family
reported her missing.
After being identified as a person of interest by police, he was hired to act for his client. He disappeared, and officers continued to search for him.