Image from ABC News

On November 13, 2022, four college students were brutally stabbed to death in their own home in Moscow, Idaho. The four victims, Ethan Chapin (20), Madison Mogen (21), Xana Kernodle (20), and Kaylee Goncalves (21) lived together in a four-story house near their college campus, the University of Idaho. The victims had two additional roommates who survived the murders. According to CBS News, all the young adults were scattered around the property: “The surviving roommates, who are respectively identified in the affidavit as B.F. and D.M., slept in bedrooms on the first and second floors of the rental home. Kernodle’s bedroom was located on the second floor, investigators said, while Goncalves and Mogen lived in two adjacent rooms on the third and uppermost floor. Goncalves and Mogen were both found in Goncalves’ bedroom.” The murder is believed to have happened between 3:00 AM and 4:30 AM, and one of the roommates slept through the entire crime. The other told police that they saw a masked figure in the house, which could have been the suspect. “A roommate … told investigators that she spotted the killer and overheard him telling his victims “I’m going to help you” before stabbing them to death…” stated Yahoo News. The 911 call was placed the next day after one of the roommates found their friend unconscious in bed.  The police say they arrived around noon, according to ABC News.

Bryan Kohberger was found and arrested because his vehicle was recognized, and the leather sheath that was connected to the knife used in the murders was found with his fingerprints. Since the suspect was arrested, more and more evidence of alarming behavior has been released. For example, back in 2015, Kohberger went on a date with a woman, Hayley Willette, who has recently reported some uncomfortable comments he said and behaviors he acted on that made her rethink spending time with him. According to Insider, Kohberger was very insistent on entering Willette’s room, and even commented on her “nice birthing hips.” Due to pressure she felt from Kohberger, she allowed him into her room and immediately regretted it. She stated that she immediately felt uneasy. He apparently always had a tendency to act inappropriately towards women, also according to Insider.

The family and friends of the victims did not recognize the suspect, so this crime was labeled as a no-motive crime. Later, some evidence was released that Kohberger could have been stalking Goncalves prior to the murders. “She said that the revelation that the 28-year-old criminology PhD student appears to have stalked the student home on King Road, Moscow, prior to the 13 November murders especially haunts her.” said the sister of the victim. Evidence also reveals that Kohberger may have struggled with substance abuse and bullying. “Former high school classmates of the man accused of murdering four students at the University of Idaho have alleged that suspected killer Brian Kohberger was bullied before becoming a bully himself and allegedly using heroin.” This information was collected from Yahoo News.