Name: Fact check: FBI confirms Brian Laundrie found dead, not arrested in Mexico
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Fact check: FBI confirms Brian Laundrie found dead, not arrested in Mexico

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USA TODAYThe remains of were found Oct. 20 at a Florida nature reserve, a month after &nbsp;after returning from a cross-country trip without his fiance, Gabby Petito.&nbsp;Laundrie, 23, was identified by authorities as a in the death of 22-year-old travel vlogger Petito, who died by strangulation likely a month before her body was found Sept. 19 in Wyoming, .&nbsp;The FBI's discovery closes a case that has has on social media. As law enforcement officials searched for Laundrie, conspiracy theories about his whereabouts regularly&nbsp;made the rounds online.&nbsp;“Brian Laundrie found ALIVE in Mexico, according to US authorities,” read the headline of an from the Conservative Beaver. A day later, the site another story&nbsp;titled,&nbsp;“Mexican Police confirm Brian Laundrie found in Cancun, Mexico.”&nbsp;On the Facebook page Finding Brian Laundrie, one user , “He is in Mexico At Stan’s. Someone must be able to go there and check it out. Why is the FBI wasting so much time at the Carlton Reserve???!”Meanwhile, other users that purportedly showed Laundrie dining at a restaurant with captions such as, “Supposedly Brian Laundrie is in Mexico! Blow this up!”&nbsp; that remains found in a Florida wilderness park were Laundrie's and that he had been identified with dental records.Fact check:The Conservative Beaver and the social media users did not return requests for comment.&nbsp;The search for Laundrie came to an end on Oct. 21 when the &nbsp;his remains were discovered in the Carlton Reserve,&nbsp;nearly in Florida's&nbsp;Sarasota County.&nbsp;Claims&nbsp;that Laundrie was detained in Mexico were made ahead of the FBI's announcement.&nbsp;However, they&nbsp;were also&nbsp;inaccurate at the time they were shared&nbsp;and originated on a site that routinely publishes fabricated stories.&nbsp;Florida's&nbsp;, the and the&nbsp;&nbsp;never stated that Laundrie was detained.&nbsp;Conservative Beaver claimed&nbsp;marshals&nbsp;announced Laundrie’s arrest on Oct. 17. However, marshals spokesman James Stossel&nbsp;told USA TODAY on Oct. 19 they are not aware of any such activity, and if Laundrie had been arrested, a public announcement would have been released. &nbsp;North Port Police spokesperson Josh Taylor the human remains found in the park were likely Laundrie's, and the FBI later&nbsp;confirmed that.&nbsp;Articles from the Conservative Beaver only cite anonymous&nbsp;“US authorities” and provide&nbsp;no evidence.&nbsp;The site has previously made fake arrest claims about former President, and billionaire investor and philanthropist , all of which have been debunked by USA TODAY.&nbsp;Fact check:Rumors that Laundrie was spotted alive in Mexico appeared online shortly after TV host John Walsh &nbsp;during an interview, but there were&nbsp;no confirmed reports of him being spotted in Mexico,&nbsp;or anywhere else.&nbsp;It is unclear when and where the image of the man eating at a&nbsp;restaurant&nbsp;was taken, and there is no evidence the photo actually shows Laundrie. Authorities have not confirmed any reported sitings of Laundrie, per.&nbsp;USA TODAY previously that a Florida trail camera photo showed Laundrie.&nbsp;Another man from New York who resembles Laundrie was recently held at&nbsp;gunpoint by marshals who mistook him for the fugitive, according to a report from The. The man&nbsp;was later released.&nbsp;Fact check:Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that authorities arrested Laundrie in Mexico. FBI officials said dental records confirmed the human remains found at Carlton Reserve were Laundrie's. Before Laundrie's remains were identified, no announcement of an arrest had been made by authorities. The claim originated on a site that has a history of publishing false information.&nbsp;Thank you for supporting our journalism. You can .Our fact-check work is supported in part by a grant from Facebook.Featured Weekly Ad

USA TODAYThe remains of were found Oct. 20 at a Florida nature reserve, a month after &nbsp;after returning from a cross-country trip without his fiance, Gabby Petito.&nbsp;Laundrie, 23, was identified by authorities as a in the death of 22-year-old travel vlogger Petito, who died by strangulation likely a month before her body was found Sept. 19 in Wyoming, .&nbsp;The FBI's discovery closes a case that has has on social media. As law enforcement officials searched for Laundrie, conspiracy theories about his whereabouts regularly&nbsp;made the rounds online.&nbsp;“Brian Laundrie found ALIVE...

Fact check: FBI confirms Brian Laundrie found dead, not arrested in Mexico

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