Florida investigators have admitted a mistake in the Gabby Petito case.
One day in September, Petito's boyfriend was apparently mistaken for his mother, said North Port police spokesman Josh Taylor, a local television station.
Petito, 22, was reported missing on September 11th.
The boyfriend's parents' home in Florida, where the couple had lived, was then monitored by police.
Shortly afterwards, Petito's friend also disappeared.
The 23-year-old drove away in his car shortly after the young woman was reported missing.
The police initially assumed that the young man had returned to his parents' house two days later.
"I think it was his mother who wore a baseball cap," said police spokesman Taylor now.
Both were of a similar stature.
When the person with the baseball cap got out of the car, they thought it was Petito's friend.
“No case is perfect,” said Taylor.
Petito had not returned from a trip to the USA with her boyfriend that summer.
After an intensive search, Petito's body was finally found in September in the state of Wyoming.
The couple had traveled there as part of their USA road trip.
According to the coroner, the young woman was strangled.
Last week, body parts of her boyfriend were finally discovered in a Florida nature reserve.
In the case, he was considered to be the relevant person for the investigation.
There have recently been contradicting information about when the parents of Petito's boyfriend reported their son missing.
The police had originally stated that the parents only informed the police days after the 23-year-old disappeared.
The family lawyer said he had contacted the police days earlier on behalf of the family.
The case has received both US and international attention.
The couple had shared numerous pictures and videos from their trip on social networks.