Gabby Petito Missing: Boyfriend Brian Laundrie Under Scrutiny as Instagram Account Deleted Mysteriously

As the mysterious disappearance of YouTuber Gabby Petito has surprised the entire country, the latest update suggests that the Instagram account on which Petito documented her road trip was deleted overnight. After the account disappeared on Wednesday, the social media site said it was a mistake.

The Long Island woman was reported missing by her family on Saturday. She was on a cross-country trip with her boyfriend Brian Laundrie in a camper van, but he returned to their home in North Port, Florida, without her. Laundrie has reportedly hired an attorney and refused to cooperate with investigators.

Brian Laundrie: A Person of Interest in Petito's Disappearance

Speculations that Laundrie 'had something to do with it' swarmed social media as soon as the news of Petito's Instagram going 'AWOL' broke out. His seemingly hazy position in Petito's disappearance has already made investigators wary of his role in the same.

Laundrie has officially been named a person of interest in Petito's disappearance, and police in their Florida hometown say he is hindering the investigation. Petito's family released a statement begging him to assist police in their search for the woman. Police are 'looking at everything,' including Utah double homicide.

Petito's Instagram Account Briefly Deactivated

The Instagram account @gabspetito, had hosted numerous posts showing Petito and Laundrie traveling through Colorado and Utah.

A spokesperson for Instagram told Insider that the account was mistakenly taken down when the company was investigating fraudulent accounts claiming to be Petito, and that the real account was later reinstated.

"The account was removed in error for impersonation and has now been reinstated," they said.

"No matter what, it should be up," her father, Joe Petito, told The New York Post.

"People need to see those Instagrams as a source of information. People need to see her face."

Petito's father said he had spent the morning trying to find out what — or who — was behind the deactivation.

"I just spoke to the FBI. It wasn't them. They were speaking to other law enforcement agencies but to be honest to you, it doesn't make sense [to deactivate it] from an investigation standpoint," he said.

Petito's Boyfriend Deactivated the Account? Netizens Say He Might Be Aware of the Password

Some internet users believed Laundrie was aware of Petito's Instagram password and he deactivated her account. However, Laundrie's page is still active and is being flooded with comments on his posts questioning him about Gabby and her whereabouts. One person wrote, "This is weird. I was actually looking at her Instagram at 5:30 am EST and noticed her posts were literally being deleted at that moment."

Another wrote, "Gabby Petito's instagram account is down. There was an interview with Gabby's father and step father on Fox news. No one in Gabby's family deleted her account. Maybe Brian knew her passwrod and there was increminating evidence in those photos. #wheresgabby #GabbyPetito."

One comment read, "I hope the FBI and police officer's working this case copied those photos before her account was deleted. There may be some clues in those photos."

One person shared, "I don't know it is strange that her profile was deleted or put back up. Also find it weird that his profile is still public. Almost as if he enjoys the attention that he is finally getting."

Facebook said Wednesday that Petito's Instagram account was removed in error and has since been reinstated