Cellphone pings, a Hyundai Elantra and a Q-tip: The evidence that linked Bryan Kohberger to the Idaho murders
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Back in 2022, four University of Idaho students were massacred in an off-campus rental house, which prompted a weeks-long manhunt for a suspected killer and rattled the quiet college town of Moscow, Idaho, that hadn't seen a murder in seven years.
The victims — Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20 — were all found stabbed to death in their home at 1122 King Road in Moscow on Nov. 13, 2022.
Weeks passed without any significant developments or a suspect. After hundreds of interviews and thousands of tips in search of a suspected killer, authorities homed in on Bryan Kohberger as their suspect. The then-28-year-old was pursuing a doctorate in criminal justice at Washington State University, just across the state border from Moscow.
In mid-December 2022, authorities tracked down Kohberger in Pennsylvania, where he was home for the holidays at his parents' house after finishing up his first semester. He was arrested on Dec. 30, 2022, and days later was extradited to Idaho.
"The defendant has studied crime," lead prosecutor Bill Thompson said during a July 2 hearing, in which Kohberger pleaded guilty to killing all four students. "In fact, he did a detailed paper on crime scene processing when he was working on his Ph.D., and he had that knowledge skillset.'
Prosecutors laid out DNA evidence, cellphone records and surveillance footage that tied Kohberger to the killings. Here's a look at the timeline of what happened, the evidence and how authorities tracked him down, according to an evidentiary summary recited by Thompson at the hearing earlier this month.
Photo illustration: Yahoo News; photos: Courtesy of the family, Maddie Mogen via Instagram; Kaylee Goncalves via Instagram; Xana Kernodle via Instagram
A timeline of what happened on Nov. 13, 2022, according to investigators
Just after 4 a.m., Kohberger entered the rental home at 1122 King Road through the kitchen sliding door at the back of the house.
Kohberger went up to the third floor, where he killed Mogen and Goncalves with a knife. He left the knife sheath next to Mogen's body.
He then worked his way back down through the house and encountered Kernodle, who had received a DoorDash order, also killing her with a knife. Kernodle's boyfriend Chapin was asleep in her bedroom, and Kohberger killed him as well.
'Each victim suffered multiple wounds,' Thompson said. 'There is no evidence that there was any sexual component or sexual assault on any of the victims.'
There were two other roommates in the house at the time of the killings who survived: Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke.
According to court documents, Mortensen said she woke up to strange noises and crying. She looked outside her bedroom door and saw a figure wearing black clothing and a mask walking toward her. Mortensen froze as the person walked past her and went to a sliding glass door. After that she locked herself in her room.
Around 11:58 a.m.: A 911 call was placed to report that Kernodle was unconscious. Moscow Police arrived to discover the four students had been killed.
Kohberger's cellphone pinged repeatedly near the murder house
July 9, 2022: Kohberger's phone started connecting to a cellphone tower in the area of the 1122 King Road home, where the murders would occur months later.
Between July 9 and Nov. 7, 2022: Kohberger's phone connected to that same tower from about 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. about 23 times. The prosecution has said they don't have evidence Kohberger had direct contact with the home or residents during that time — but they know that his phone was in the area at those times.
Nov. 13, 2022: Kohberger left his apartment in Pullman, Wash. His phone was turned off at about 2:54 a.m. It remained off until about 4:48 a.m. when his phone came back on, and his phone activity tracked back to his apartment in Pullman.
Kohberger's car was seen on surveillance video repeatedly passing the murder house
The site of the quadruple murder on Jan. 3, 2023 in Moscow, Idaho. ()
Aug. 22, 2022: Kohberger was pulled over by a Latah County Sheriff's deputy in Idaho for a routine traffic stop. He was driving a 2015 white Hyundai Elantra with a Pennsylvania license plate. Authorities obtained his name, phone number and address.
Nov. 13, 2022: Video surveillance from a business on the highway that connects Pullman and Moscow showed a 2015 white Hyundai Elantra entering Moscow around 3:02 a.m. Around 3:30 a.m., surveillance from businesses and residences showed Kohberger's car circling the neighborhood near 1122 King Road. 4:05 a.m.: Kohberger parked his car on the street behind the house. 4:20 a.m.: His car is seen on surveillance tape leaving the area outside 1122 King Road at a high speed. He then drove on rural backroads to avoid highways with surveillance cameras. 5:26 a.m.: Surveillance cameras in Pullman picked up his car heading toward his apartment. 5:30 a.m.: Kohberger arrived back at his apartment in Pullman. Around 9 a.m.: As indicated by cellphone tower pings, his phone returned to the area of King Road, stayed for about 10 minutes and then returned to his apartment in Pullman. Around 9:30 a.m.: Based on evidence taken from his cellphone, he took a selfie giving a thumbs-up in what appears to be his bathroom at his residence.
The knife and sheath
In March 2022, Kohberger bought a Ka-Bar knife, which is meant for combat, on Amazon using a gift card. Evidence shows he attempted to delete his purchase history from Amazon.
The knife sheath was found next to Mogen's body and was sent to the Idaho State Police forensic lab. Single-source male DNA was found on the snap of the sheath, as well as blood from Mogen and Goncalves.
The DNA on a Q-tip
Before Kohberger's arrest in December 2022, authorities conducted a trash pull at his parent's house in Pennsylvania. They took samples of trash that were set out on the street for collection and sent them to the Idaho State forensics laboratory.
Lab experts were able to identify DNA on a Q-tip that came from the father of the person whose DNA was found on the knife sheath that was found at the crime scene next to Mogen's body.
After Kohberger was arrested and extradited to Idaho, a DNA sample was taken from him, which matched the DNA from the button on the knife sheath.
What's next for Kohberger?
Kohberger, 30, was expected to go through a lengthy and highly publicized trial in August. But in a surprise turn of events, Kohberger pleaded guilty on July 2 to murdering the four students as part of a plea deal to avoid the death penalty.
His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, where he's expected to receive four consecutive life sentences, plus 10 years for burglary, according to the terms of the deal. He also waived his right to appeal and to challenge the sentence.
What we still don't know
Authorities never found the murder weapon, nor did they find any usable evidence in Kohberger's sparse apartment or office. When they searched his Hyundai Elantra, they found that it was cleaned so thoroughly that there wasn't anything to discover even in the crevices of the car.
The main questions that have gone unanswered still remain: Why did Kohberger kill these four students? Why did he pick the house at 1122 King Road and those victims who were apparent strangers to him?
On Monday, President Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social that he hopes Judge Steven Hippler 'makes Kohberger, at a minimum, explain why he did these horrible murders.'
'There are no explanations, there is no NOTHING. People were shocked that he was able to plea bargain, but the Judge should make him explain what happened,' Trump wrote online, adding, 'These were vicious murders, with so many questions left unanswered.'
Kohberger's current plea agreement doesn't require him to explain his motive or actions. While he'll have the formal opportunity to speak directly to the court before he is sentenced this week after victim impact statements are read, it's unclear whether he will say anything.
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