Video shows mystery man with slain Idaho students
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Police in Idaho have said that they are unable to corroborate reports that Kaylee Goncalves had a stalker.
Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin, were stabbed to death in Moscow on 13 November.
Investigators said they had not been able to confirm reports that Goncalves was being stalked but encouraged the public to continue submitting tips.
Authorities are currently providing updates on the investigation in a press conference.
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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Authorities unable to corroborate Kaylee Goncalves was being stalked
During a press conference on Wednesday, authorities said that attempts to investigate reports that one of the victims was being stalked had not been successful.
Moscow Captain Roger Lanier said that the department had looked intensively into reports that Goncalves had a stalker, and encouraged the public to continue submitting tips.
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 21:16
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Families decry conspiracists: ‘All the noise is really harming’
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 Sheila’s coverage:
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 20:56
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University of Idaho tells student they won’t have to return to campus unti 2023
In a release on Tuesday, university president Scott Greene said that the college plans to “be flexible through the end of the semester.
Faculty were asked to prepare in-person and remote learning options for the final two weeks of the semester.
“Normally, I have to drive around five minutes trying to find a parking spot; I pulled in and one of the closest spots is open,” Mr Bartels said. “I mean, literally, the student population going to class declined by 50 per cent. Overnight.”
The Independent’s Sheila Flynn and Andrea Blanco have the story:
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 19:43
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More details expected to be revealed during presser on Wednesday
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.
I that event, authorities said that the two surviving roommates, a male seen on Twitch video that also featured Goncalves and Mogen at a food truck hours before the murders, and an individual who drove the two of them home that night are not considered suspects.
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 18:50
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Killer was likely a stalker or someone who knew four students, ex-FBI profiler says
A retired FBI behavioural analyst believes the culprit behind the University of Idaho murders was either a stalker or somebody known to the victims.
Former agent Jim Clemente, who is not working on the case, spoke to Fox News Digital about the quadruple murder that shook the college town of Moscow and the nation on 13 November. Mr Clemente profiled the killer as “sloppy,” and close in age to the victims.
The Independent’s Andrea Blanco has more:
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 18:05
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Victims were stabbed to death in their beds
Latah County Coroner Cathy Mabbutt told NewsNation that each victim suffered multiple stab wounds from a “pretty large knife.”
“It has to be somebody pretty angry in order to stab four people to death,” Mabbutt said.
Mabbutt’s comments expanded on the autopsy reports that concluded the four students were murdered by being stabbed to death. The bodies were found on the second and third floors.
Authorities have said they were found in their bead and were likely sleeping at the time of the attack.
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 17:14
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Terror grips Moscow after quadruple murder
More than ten days after the brutal stabbings of Xana Kernodle, 20, Ethan Chapin, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21, shocked Moscow a dark cloud remains over the small college town, residents tell The Independent’s Sheila Flynn.
The local can’t keep up with demands for deadbolts, receiving up to 50 requests a day — more work than the two store employees can take on.
One student at Idaho University estimates that 50 per cent of the student body, which makes up half of Moscow’s population, has left campus.
Meanwhile, a tattoo shop owner has offered to walk residents home and check their homes before they locked their doors.
Read Sheila’s report from on the ground in Idaho:
Guns, deadbolts and mass student exodus: Terror grips Idaho town after murders
Parents are ordering deadbolts, teens are asking for guns and the streets are empty in Moscow. There is a killer – or killers – on the loose, ten days after four college students were murdered in their beds. Locals tell Sheila Flynn how fear is deepening as time goes by without any arrests and with little information from police
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 16:28
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Multiple people were at the home when 911 call was made
Police revealed earlier this week that the two surviving roommates had ‘summoned friends’ to the home around noon on 13 November because they believed one of the victims had passed out.
More than one person spoke to the 911 dispatcher before officers were dispatched to the residence in the college town of Moscow.
Police arrived at the scene and found the bodies of the four victims on the second and third floors.
It is thought that they were killed during their sleep.
Andrea Blanco23 November 2022 15:23
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Timeline of the brutal murders
More than s week on from the murders, much remains a mystery surrounding the circumstances of the horrific stabbings of Xana Kernodle, 20, Ethan Chapin, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21.
Officials believe the students were killed sometime between 3am and 4am on 13 November.
Law enforcement was called to the home on King Road at 11.58am on Sunday after a 911 call came in alerting them to “an unconscious individual”.
The call was made from the cellphone of one of the surviving roommates but police have refused to confirm the identity of the caller.
Authorities have since revealed that all four victims were stabbed to death with an “edged weapon such as a knife” – though the murder weapon has not been found.
The Independent’s Io Dodds and Rachel Sharp have an updated timeline of the developments in the case:
Megan Sheets23 November 2022 14:30
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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