Video shows mystery man with slain Idaho students
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Police in Idaho have said that the murder weapon used to kill four University of Idaho students is believed to be a fix-blade knife.
Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, were stabbed to death at an off-campus home on 13 November.
In the latest update, investigators said they were looking into reports that Goncalves had a stalker.
“Investigators … have pursued hundreds of pieces of information related to this topic and have not been able to verify or identify a stalker,” Moscow police said on Facebook.
Authorities are set to give an update on the investigation at a 1pm press conference on Wednesday.
More than one week on from the killings, investigators continue to be baffled by the case, with no arrests made and no suspects identified – spurring mounting frustration from families and the community.
Police have also ruled out any connection between the murders and a 21 November incident when a woman reported a man sitting in her vehicle.
Key points
Weapon believed to be a fix-blade knife, say policePolice probing whether victim Kaylee Goncalves had a stalkerPolice rule out mystery car incident from 21 NovemberNeighbour says victims’ residence ‘not necessarily a party house’Families of victims plead to end wild conspiracy theoriesOver a week, 600 tips, no suspects identified, no arrests madeShow latest update
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Police dispel speculation surrounding murders of four University of Idaho students
Authorities in Moscow, where four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death last week, have warned the public against rumours online.
During a press conference on Sunday, Moscow Police revealed few details about the ongoing investigation into the brutal murders of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20. No arrests have been made a week after the slayings and police have yet to identify any suspects.
Authorities addressed conspiracies surrounding the murders that have been spreading online. Police Captain Roger Lanier denied reports that the victims had been found tied and gagged and said that any information circulating about the identity of the 911 caller was mere speculation.
Read more from Andrea Blanco:
Megan Sheets23 November 2022 14:10
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Moscow police to give update at 1pm press conference
Authorities with the Moscow Police Department and other agencies involved in the massive search for a suspect in the Idaho college murders case are set to give their latest update today.
A press conference is scheduled for 1pm local time.
It’s been three days since police gave their last press conference on Sunday evening.
In that event, very little new information was presented – adding to frustrations over the pace of the investigation.
It is unclear what information could come out of the press conference today.
Megan Sheets23 November 2022 13:49
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Grieving families demand conspiracists to stop: ‘All the noise is really harming’
His girlfriend, Xana Kernodle, 20, and her roommates Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21, were also killed in the attack.
The memorial was closed to the media.
In her latest report from on the ground in Idaho, Sheila writes: “As hundreds gathered to pay their respects, the three other victims’ families were also grieving six hours away in Idaho – and pleading for an end to wild speculation about the case that has both amplified their pain and complicated investigations.”
“All the noise out there is really harming the families,” a friend of Kristi and Steve Goncalves, Kaylee’s parents, told The Independent. “And it’s taking the police down trails that are not real and taking them away from the ones that are.”
Read the full story here:
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 13:00
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Moscow police is aware that Kaylee Goncalves had a stalker
Authorities have confirmed that they’re actively investigating the reports that one of the four University of Idaho students killed on 13 November had a stalker.
“We’re aware of these various reports and we’re investigating,” a Moscow Police Department spokesperson told ABC on Tuesday.
Goncalves, her roommates Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kernodle’s boyfriend Ethan Chapin were brutally stabbed to death during the attack last week.
“There is a piece of evidence out there somewhere that’s gonna help us solve this case,” the spokesperson added to ABC.
The Independent has reached out to the department for comment.
Slain University of Idaho students Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves
(GoFundme)
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 12:00
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Dog was found unharmed at the home where murders took place, police reveal
The Moscow Police Department released a statement on Monday saying that officers responding to the fatal stabbings at 1122 King Road on 13 November located a dog at the residence.
The pet was unharmed and turned over to Animal Services, police said.
It has since been released to a “responsible party.” it is unclear who owned the dog.
It was not disclosed whether police believe that the killer, who is still at large, spared the dog’s life or never came into contact with it.
The Independent’s Sheila Flynn has the story:
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 11:00
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Killer ‘likely knew victims and layout of the house,’ criminology expert weighs in
Jim Clemente, a retired FBI agent, told Fox News Digital that the suspect behind the killings of Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen, was likely a young man who had not carried out a murder before.
“He’s sloppy,” the behavioural analysis expert told the network. “This is probably more of a compulsive kind of person, that would put him at a younger age and, maybe in the age group or just above the victims.”
“I don’t think he’s particularly sophisticated, criminally sophisticated or forensically sophisticated.”
Mr Clemente, who is not working on the case, also told Fox that the murderer likely knew one of the victims, or had been stalking them recently.
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 10:00
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Investigators move boundary tape to cover back of the King Road home
Police have cordoned off the parking lot of the Moscow, Idaho, home where four University of Idaho students were found stabbed to death on 13 November.
It is unclear whether the department has cordoned off the area to preserve potential evidence from contamination or if new developments in the investigation into the horrific stabbings of Xana Kernodle, 20, Ethan Chapin, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21, have already been made.
The Moscow Police Department said in a statement to The Independent that the crime scene “was not expanded” but “the boundary tape was moved [because] detectives needed extra space to work.
The Independent asked the department for clarification on why it had not been moved before.
(AP)
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 09:00
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Idaho investigators seek surveillance video
Authorities investigating the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students have asked for outside surveillance video.
The Moscow Police Department late Saturday requested from businesses and residences in specific parts of the city any footage recorded between 3am and 6am on 13 November.
Police said they have received more than 600 tips after the killings shook the Idaho Panhandle community of 25,000 residents.
More than 90 people have been interviewed. No arrests have been made as of Tuesday evening and authorities have yet to identify any suspects.
A press conference is scheduled for Wednesday.
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 08:00
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Idaho victims often ‘hosted parties with lots of people coming in and out of the house,’ neighbours say
Moscow resident Heather Tetwiler told Fox News that the slain students — Xana Kernodle, 20, Ethan Chapin, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Moge, 21, — would host typical college gatherings, but that the residence was “not necessarily a party house.”
“They had like small gatherings, maybe like ten people or so and it never really got crazy other than the usual college stuff but they were pretty respectful,” Ms Tetwiler said.
Moscow police have reiterated that there were no signs of forced entry into the six-bedroom home.
Investigators continue to piece together what happened in the early morning hours of 13 November and the circumstances surrounding the brutal fatal stabbings.
The Independent’s Andrea Blanco has more:
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 07:00
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‘Private party’ who drove Kaylee and Maddie home is ruled out, new details about 911 call revealed
Moscow police announced on Saturday that an anonymous “private party” drove Goncalves and Mogen home.
“At this time, detectives have investigated the private party driver who took Kaylee and Madison home on November 13th and do not believe he is involved in this crime,” the department wrote on its Facebook page on Sunday.
The briefing also contained new details about the role of the victims’ two surviving roommates, who were likely home at the time of the murder.
The surviving individuals arrived back at home around 1am, according to police.
They are not suspects in the investigations and are “not necessarily” considered suspects, police have said.
However, once the roommates were home, they fell asleep and didn’t wake up until “later on November 13th,” Moscow police said, helping to explain why police were not called until noon later that day.
The murders took pace sometime between 3am and 4am.
The 911 call was “made from inside the residence on one of the roommates’ cell phones,” police added.
They had “summoned friends to the residence” because they believed one of the victims had passed out.
Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, y Kaylee Goncalves, 21
(Instagram)
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 06:00