Gabby Petito Case Update: Cause Of Death May Be ‘More Challenging’ To Determine Than Normal Autopsy

An autopsy of the remains found in Wyoming’s Bridger-Teton National Forest over the weekend is expected to take place on Tuesday, but according to one expert, it likely won’t result in quick and easy answers.

The body, consistent with the description of Gabby Petito, the 22-year-old YouTuber who was last seen in late August, was uncovered in the park’s Spread Creek Dispersed Campsite area on Sept. 19. At the time, law enforcement said they believed the remains belonged to Petito but that it would require a full forensic identification to confirm.

The autopsy should reveal a cause of death, but one expert has warned that determining the cause and the time of death, in this case, could be a complicated process.

Priya Banerjee, a board-certified forensic pathologist, explained during an appearance on “Fox & Friends First” on Tuesday why the process could face challenges.

Petito was reported missing by her mother on Sept. 11 but was last seen on Aug. 24. Banerjee said if the remains found do belong to Petito, that means the body may have had weeks to decompose which makes an autopsy “a bit more challenging.”

"The first thing to consider is that if we think about when she was last communicated with in late August, that leads quite a bit of time for her to be deceased and for the body to decompose," said Banerjee, as reported by Fox News.

"Given the length of time, I just worried that everything's going to not look like it's supposed to be, hence the decomposition. That can change not only the color of tissues, but it could potentially even hide surface defects."

She continued, ”Once we get inside, hopefully, they can see, you know, remnants of blood discoloration, whatever else, bone trauma should be readily identified."

READ: Gabby Petito’s Mom Repeatedly Slams Ex-Fiance For Mysterious Behavior

To determine the cause of death, Banerjee said pathologists will need to “really dive in” and use “extra analysis” to make determinations.

A forensic entomologist may be needed to help determine the time of death, said Banerjee.

"Then even with decomposition, sometimes the bugs found on the body and other tissue changes can even tell you help you along the lines for dating,” she said. “Bugs, soil elements that can actually, if a forensic entomologist gets involved, they can work backwards to try to deduce a better timeline for when she was killed."

Petito had been traveling with her longtime boyfriend, 23-year-old Brian Laundrie, when she went missing. The couple had been touring the U.S. by van since July. Laundrie returned home to Florida on Sept. 1 without Petito. After being named a person of interest in the case, he went missing last week. His home was named a crime scene on Monday.