KEY POINTS

  • An identical bottle can be seen in Gabby Petito's "van life" YouTube video
  • The group alerted police after finding the bottle and bone fragments 
  • Police said none of the items discovered Sunday were tied to the investigation

Days after the human remains of Brian Laundrie were found at Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park in Florida, a group of people has stumbled upon a water bottle that allegedly belongs to YouTuber Gabby Petito in a nearby area.

A group of hikers on Sunday discovered some bone fragments and a Nalgene-style water bottle with labeling from a Seattle REI Co-op close to the area where Brian's remains were found last week, reported Fox News.

A similar bottle can be seen in Gabby Petito's "van life" YouTube video. The bottle, hanging by the left side of a van door, is visible 7 minutes, 27 seconds into the video.

The hikers alerted the police after finding the bone remains and the bottle. Officers collected the bones but could not determine immediately whether they were human or animal. They, however, left the bottle behind.

Police later said none of the items found Sunday was connected to the investigation, the report added.

A police department spokesman did not immediately respond when shown the screengrab from Petito's video, Fox News reported.

TikTok user Olivia, who was part of the group that found the items, said the act was "negligent" and "irresponsible." "They were more interested in the bones – but they knew they were animal bones," she told Fox News.

Richard Stafford, the attorney for Petito's parents, said he didn't understand why police would have left the bottle behind.

"It looks like hers. We have a picture that's from before she left for her trip. It looks like that bottle. I don't know why it would be left there," Stafford said.

Meanwhile, Brian's mother, Roberta, had unknowingly walked just a few yards away from the area where her son's remains were found last week, the report said.

During her search at the Florida park, Roberta walked to the edge of a clearing, which was later cordoned off by the police after finding human remains and some of Brian's personal belongings.

Chris and Roberta later claimed that they did not see anything in that immediate area at the time. The couple added that the authorities did not specify where their son's remains were found, the Fox report added.

Law enforcement agencies during the search of the T. Mabry Carlton Jr. Memorial Reserve for Brian Laundrie
Law enforcement agencies during the search of the T. Mabry Carlton Jr. Memorial Reserve for Brian Laundrie GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Octavio JONES