Brian Laundrie's parents have denied speculation that they planted his remains or evidence in a nature reserve where the missing man's body was found.
Steven Bertolino, the lawyer for Chris and Roberta Laundrie, said the rumours were "hogwash" and the couple have "now lost their lives" and are "suffering".
On Thursday human remains found in Florida were identified as belonging to Brian.
The 23-year-old vanished last month after returning from a road trip without his partner Gabby Petito, 22, and refused to cooperate with an investigation into her disappearance as he became the sole person of interest.
Gabby's body was later discovered in a remote area in Wyoming on September 19, and a post-mortem confirmed she had been strangled.
The FBI launched a manhunt for Laundrie, and named him as a person of interest in Gabby's death.
Human remains were found alongside a backpack and notepad belonging to Laundrie at the Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park on Wednesday.
The FBI later said they were able to identify Laundrie through dental records.
In an interview with NBC News after the grim discovery Laundrie's lawyer Steven Bertolino said Brian was in a distraught state of mind before he left for the last time.
He said: "I can tell you Brian was very upset when he left. Chris conveyed to me several times he wished he wouldn't have let him go, but he couldn't stop him."
Both Chris and Roberta Laundrie were at the scene when the remains and personal items were discovered, he said previously, after they said they wanted to join in the search.
He said: "Chris didn't want to pick the bag up because he wanted law enforcement to see it. This was caught on camera."
He went on to say that Chris found Brian's white plastic dry bag in front of a news reporter, as police uncovered his backpack and human remains.
He said: "Chris couldn't find the law enforcement because they were then out of sight, because Chris had been in the woods, so he didn't want to leave the bag there with the news reporter standing nearby, so he picked it up."
The Laundries were then asked to leave the park as investigations continued, he said.
He added: "At that point, the Laundries were notified that there was also remains near the backpack and they were asked to leave the reserve."
The lawyer had also dismissed suggestions the parents planted Brian’s possessions, saying they were both being shadowed by reporters and police.
He called those suggestions “hogwash.”
Gabby and Laundrie embarked on their trip in early July from New York's Long Island, where her parents live.
As they travelled through Kansas, Colorado, Utah and points west, Gabby documented their "van life" on social media.
She posted her final photo to Instagram on August 25, the same day she last spoke to her mum by phone.
The remains of both have now been identified.
