There are competing agendas at work here.
The MSM wants him alive. They want the trial and the controversy and the ratings. They want him found and a conflicted narrative where he might be both innocent and guilty at the same time.
Federal law enforcement will likely hope he's dead. If he's alive, he risks getting off from all charges in a court of law ( these things aren't so simple) , in which cases there's no return on investment for the resources/manpower/etc/ etc to hunt him down. This is a legitimate "red ball" case so the optics here for the FBI will matter a great deal to them.
If the FBI finds him alive, they have every incentive in place to execute him on the spot. It will look like "justice" and that will sate the public's demand for blood for Petito and end the narrative the way that works out for them.
If Laundrie is innocent, there are simply more practical upsides in place to have him killed by many involved in all this.
If Laundrie is guilty, those same upsides exist to have him killed.
If he's actually innocent, let's run that hypothetical, his best move is to upload a video on YouTube explaining his side of the story. At least the public will hear it from his own mouth and in his own words.
