Bryan Kohberger case: Surviving roommate saw Xana Kernodle on floor after encounter with masked intruder
A roommate inside the home where four University of Idaho students were killed saw one of her housemates on the floor minutes after seeing a masked intruder but walked past the scene, according to a new court filing.
Bryan Kohberger is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of four students at the University of Idaho, including Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; Madison Mogen, 21; and Ethan Chapin, 20. The former Washington State University student was also charged with one felony count of burglary.
D.M. and B.F., the surviving roommates, returned to their Moscow, Idaho home during the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2022 after a night out. The Thursday night court filing reveals that D.M. and B.F. met in Goncalves' bedroom before resting for the night.
At 4:00 a.m., D.M. reported hearing strange noises as well as crying coming from the bathroom. According to the documents, she opened her door and "saw a man dressed in black with a ski mask on."
After seeing the man with a ski mask on, D.M. called and texted her roommates to see if they were awake. B.F. was the only one to respond, and the two spoke on the phone for 24 seconds. They would speak again for 41 seconds just a minute after the first call, and D.M. told B.F. "she saw a man in a ski mask leaving the house," the document states.
The two would continue frantically texting each other 4:22 a.m. and 4:26 a.m.
"No one is answering," D.M. texted B.F. "I'm rlly confused rn."
"Ya dude wtf," B.F. responded. "Xana was wearing all black."
At one point between 4:22 a.m. and 4:26 a.m., D.M. texted Goncalves, but received no response. D.M. also attempted to contact Kernodle and Chapin, who both didn't respond.
D.M. then left her room and began "running" toward B.F.'s room and saw Kernodle "laying on the floor of her bedroom" with "her head towards the wall and her feet toward the door" at 4:17 a.m.
At the time, D.M. thought Kernodle was drunk.
Between 5:00 a.m. and 6:30 a.m., D.M. "engaged in activity on her phone, primarily creating, editing and deleting images and videos," the filing stated. Her phone activity ended at 8:05 a.m. At 10:23 a.m., D.M. texted Mogen, but got no response. She used Instagram up until 11:29 a.m., when she texted Goncalves asking if she was up.
B.F. would eventually call 911 at 11:56 a.m. once several of her friends arrived.
Heather and Jared Barnhart, digital specialists retained by law enforcement to analyze Kohberger's cell phone and PC, determined that there were "abnormal" gaps in data on the devices, according to the court filing.
In the Barnhart's joint report, they observed "gaps" in Kohberger's PC which "may be consistent with cleaning up or using anti-forensic methods to clear evidence," the court filing indicated.
The documents also disclosed that Brent Turvey, a crime scene analyst called by the defense, said that there were attempts by the suspects to "clean up the crime scene after the homicides," which he claims "would have taken far longer than the time interval alleged by the state.
Judge Steven Hippler ruled that the Barnhart's testimony is admissible during the trial, as well as most of the 911 call placed by the roommates.
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