Lana Oconnell
On November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students—Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Ethan Chapin, and Xana Kernodle—were found dead at an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho. The four victims, who were close friends, had spent the previous night out near the university campus and returned to the house in the early hours of Sunday. They were found slaughtered inside their home, with no signs of forced entry or damage. The killings, which were determined to be a targeted attack, sparked a complex investigation that led to the arrest of Bryan Christopher Kohberger, a 28-year-old doctoral student in criminal justice, nearly two months later.
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What You'll Learn
- The victims: Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin
- The suspect: Bryan Christopher Kohberger, a criminology student
- The investigation: Moscow Police Department, Idaho State Police, and the FBI
- The trial: scheduled for August 11, 2025, seeking the death penalty
- The location: an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho
The victims: Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin
On November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students—Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20—were fatally stabbed in an off-campus residence at 1122 King Road in Moscow, Idaho. The four roommates had spent a typical Saturday night out near the university campus and returned to the house in the early hours of Sunday.
Madison Mogen, who went by Maddie, was a senior from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, majoring in marketing. Her boyfriend, Jake Schriger, said she had been excited for graduation and talked about wanting to explore other parts of the world. Mogen's grandmother, Kim Cheeley, described her as a gentle and caring person who kept many long-term friendships and close ties with her extended family. Mogen's friend Jessie Frost shared that she had planned to move to Boise after graduation. Mogen and Goncalves had been best friends since the sixth grade, and they shared a bed the night they were killed.
Kaylee Goncalves, from Rathdrum, Idaho, was a senior majoring in general studies at the College of Letters, Arts and Social Sciences. She had planned to move to Austin, Texas, after her expected graduation in December to start a job at a marketing firm, according to her friend Jordyn Quesnell. Goncalves's sister, Alivea Goncalves, sent a statement to the Idaho Statesman on behalf of her family and Mogen's family. Goncalves's father, Steven Goncalves, said of the crime scene image, "To him, that’s his little trophy to let him know like, 'Hey, I got away with it, nobody’s on me.'"
Xana Kernodle was a junior studying marketing and was a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority. She grew up in Idaho but had spent time in Avondale, Arizona, in recent years. Kernodle's sister, Jazzmin Kernodle, described her as "one of the best people I have ever known" and said she was "a positive, funny woman who made [me] very proud." Kernodle's father, Jeffrey Kernodle, said she was "with her friends all the time." Kernodle and Chapin had been dating since the spring.
Ethan Chapin, from Conway, Washington, was one of a set of triplets who were all students at the University of Idaho. He had spent much of the day before the killings with his siblings and mother, Stacy Chapin, who remembered him as "the life of the party" and "the kindest person." Chapin played basketball in high school and was known for his big smile. He was a freshman majoring in recreation, sport, and tourism management and was a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.
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The suspect: Bryan Christopher Kohberger, a criminology student
Bryan Christopher Kohberger, a 28-year-old doctoral student of criminology and criminal justice at Washington State University, was arrested in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, on December 30, 2022, in connection with the Idaho student killings. He faces four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. The prosecution is seeking the death penalty.
Kohberger was arrested nearly seven weeks after the killings, which took place in the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, when four University of Idaho students were fatally stabbed in an off-campus residence. The victims were housemates Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Xana Kernodle, 20, as well as Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20.
According to court documents, a combination of evidence led investigators to Kohberger. Cell phone data showed that his phone utilized a cell tower near the victims' residence around 9 a.m. on the day of the killings, and his phone had pinged from the same tower at least twelve times between June and November 2022. Investigators also obtained three unidentified male DNA samples from the crime scene, including DNA found on a tan leather knife sheath on Mogen's bed. A public genealogy database identified a partial match to an individual with a familial connection to Kohberger.
Trash recovered from outside Kohberger's family home in Pennsylvania contained DNA that matched the sample from the knife sheath. Additionally, Kohberger had photos of one of the female victims on his phone, and he had sent a series of messages to one of the victims on Instagram two weeks before the killings.
Kohberger's lawyers have filed an alibi defense, stating that cellphone tower data will show he was miles away when the victims were killed. They have also filed a motion to strike the death penalty due to Kohberger's diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), which they argue results in significant impairments in communication, reasoning, social skills, and understanding others' reactions.
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The investigation: Moscow Police Department, Idaho State Police, and the FBI
On November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death in a shared rental home close to campus. The victims were Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20.
The investigation of the stabbings was led by the Moscow Police Department (MPD) and supported by the Idaho State Police (ISP) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Moscow Police Chief James Fry has remained in charge of the investigation since the day of the killings. Almost 130 members of law enforcement from the three agencies worked on the case. Moscow Police Capt. Roger Lanier also played a key role in the investigation.
The Idaho State Police is in charge of fielding press inquiries, though Snell, an ISP spokesperson, said he continues to report directly to Fry. Snell couldn’t provide an exact number on how many state troopers and FBI officials are assisting in the investigation because it is changing daily.
The Moscow Police Department has shifted its priorities and resources since the killings, with 29 members of various ranks, including four detectives and 24 patrol officers, plus five of its ten support staff, immediately committed to the case. The department also continues to dispel online rumors and speculation.
The FBI and Idaho State Police have provided additional resources and support to the investigation, with 44 FBI investigators and agents assigned, as well as about 36 ISP members, plus its mobile crime scene team and forensics services.
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The trial: scheduled for August 11, 2025, seeking the death penalty
The trial of Bryan Christopher Kohberger, the suspect in the killings of four University of Idaho students in November 2022, is scheduled to begin on August 11, 2025, in Boise, Idaho. Kohberger, a 28-year-old doctoral student in criminal justice at the time of his arrest, faces four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty given the aggravating circumstances of the first-degree murder charges.
The victims, Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20, were found dead in an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho, on November 13, 2022. They had been fatally stabbed multiple times with a large knife, and all four deaths were deemed homicides by stabbing. The case stunned the small community of Moscow and sparked weeks of speculation and thousands of tips before culminating in Kohberger's arrest in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, on December 30, 2022.
Kohberger's arrest followed an extensive investigation by the Moscow Police Department, the Idaho State Police, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Investigators obtained cell phone data placing Kohberger's phone near the victims' residence around 9 a.m. on the day of the killings, and DNA evidence from the crime scene was also linked to Kohberger. In the lead-up to the trial, Kohberger's lawyers have filed an alibi defense, stating that cellphone tower data will show he was miles away when the victims were killed. They intend to rely on the testimony of a cell tower data expert at the trial.
The trial, originally set to begin in 2024, was delayed due to various factors, including a change of venue and the complexity of the case. The house where the killings occurred was donated to the university and demolished in December 2022, and prosecutors were denied a jury view of the premises due to substantial changes to its condition. As the trial date approaches, questions remain about the case, including the motive behind the targeted attack and the relationship between the victims and the killer.
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The location: an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho
On November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death in an off-campus residence in Moscow, Idaho. The residence was located at 1122 King Road and was a rented, three-story home with six bedrooms, two on each floor. Five female University of Idaho students lived in the house during the fall 2022 semester.
The four victims were Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20. They were housemates, with three of them being seniors and one a freshman. On the day of the killings, they had spent a typical Saturday night out near the university campus and returned to the house in the early hours of Sunday.
The killings took place in bedrooms located on the second and third floors. Two other female roommates were home at the time, texting one another during the murders, but were unharmed. One of the roommates saw a masked stranger outside her bedroom door but waited several hours before calling 911. The victims were found to have been stabbed multiple times with a large knife, with fatal wounds in the chest and upper body.
The house where the killings occurred was donated to the university and was demolished in December 2023. A memorial garden for the victims was opened on the University of Idaho campus in 2024, and scholarships were created in the names of three of the victims.
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Frequently asked questions
The four University of Idaho students were killed on November 13, 2022.
The four students were stabbed to death. Autopsies revealed that they were stabbed multiple times with a large knife.
The victims were Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kernodle's boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20.
