BYU-Idaho Radio · The University of Idaho murder affidavit has been released
More information is now available about how police tracked down a suspect in the murder case of four University of Idaho students.
According to the probable cause affidavit, which the document where Moscow police detail why they believe they have the right suspect, on the afternoon of Nov. 13, 2022, investigators processed the home on King Rd. in Moscow, Idaho where the four students were found stabbed to death.
In the documents, investigators say they found Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves dead with stab wounds on a single bed in Mogen’s bedroom. A tan leather knife sheath was left on the bed. The Idaho State Lab later found a source of male DNA on the knife sheath.?
Investigators believe the murders happened between 4 and 4:25 a.m. on Nov. 13.
Investigators interviewed two roommates of the victims, known as B.F. and D.M. in the documents. Both roommates were inside the home during the homicides.?
B.F. and D.M. both said everyone was home by 2 a.m. and in their rooms by 4, including Ethan Chapin who was visiting Xana Kernodle.?
D.M. said she woke up at 4 a.m. by what sounded like Goncalves playing with her dog in an upstairs bedroom. D.M. later said she heard what sounded like Goncalves say, "There's someone here."?
D.M. looked out of her bedroom but did not see anything.?
According to Kernodle’s cell phone, she was likely awake at 4:12 a.m. D.M. opened her door again when she thought she heard crying from Kernodle’s room. D.M. then heard a male voice say, "It's okay, I'm going to help you."
At 4:17 a.m., a resident security camera less than 50 feet from Kernodle’s bedroom picked up audio of voices or a whimper followed by a loud thud. A dog is also heard barking several times.?
D.M. opened her door a third time after the crying and saw a figure walking toward her, wearing black clothing that covered the person's mouth and nose. D.M. described the person as male, 5 feet 10 inches or taller with bushy eyebrows.?
D.M. was frozen with shock as the man walked past her toward the back door. She locked herself in her room. Investigators suspect this was when the murderer left.??
Multiple security videos in the King Rd. neighborhood show a white Hyundai Elantra passing by the residence three times from 3:29 to 4:20 a.m.
On Nov. 25, Moscow Police Department asked law enforcement agencies to look out for white Hyundai Elantras in the area. Washington State University police officer Daniel Tiengo questioned owners of white Elantras registered at WSU. He found a 2015 white Elantra with a Pennsylvania license plate belonging to Bryan Kohberger, who lives in Pullman, Washington, which is less than a mile from the intersection of Stadium Way and Cougar Way where the last camera recorded the white Elantra.?
Corporal Officer Brett Payne with the Moscow Police Department could see from Kohberger's driver's license that he is white, 6 feet tall and has bushy eyebrows, which matches D.M.'s description of the intruder.?
On Nov. 18, five days after the murders, Kohberger registered the Elantra with Washington and received a Washington license plate. Before this, it was registered in Pennsylvania.?
On Dec. 16, surveillance video showed the Elantra in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, where Kohberger's family lives.?
According to Kohberger's cell phone, the phone was near the King Road home at least 12 times in the late evening or early morning before Nov. 13.?Officer Brett Payne wrote in the affidavit, “I also know on numerous occasions, subjects will surveil an area where they intend to commit a crime prior to the date of the crime.”
On Dec. 27, Pennsylvania agents gathered evidence from the trash where Kohberger's family lives in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania. The Idaho State Lab tested the evidence and reported the next day that the DNA from the trash and the DNA from the sheath identified the male as not being excluded as the biological father of the suspect. 99.9% of males would be excluded from this possibility, which means it was likely Kohberger's DNA on the sheath.?
Kohberger arrived in Idaho Wednesday night and was in a Latah County courtroom for his first appearance where he heard his charges.
Kohberger didn't say much, simply replying "Yes," when the judge asked him if he understood his charges.
Kohberger's lawyer asked for a bond to be set, but the judge denied it, citing Idaho code which does not allow bond for first-degree murder cases.
The next hearing in the case is on Jan. 12.