Authorities arrested Thursday a 28-year-old criminal justice graduate student in the mysterious murders of four University of Idaho students that shook a small community that hadn’t reported a murder in five years.
Bryan Kohberger, a doctoral student at nearby Washington State University, was arrested in eastern Pennsylvania. The students — Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Xana Kernodle, 20 — were stabbed to death at a rental home near campus in Moscow, Idaho.
DNA evidence played a key role in identifying Kohberger as a suspect in the killings and authorities were able to match his DNA to genetic material recovered during the investigation, a law enforcement official said. In recent days, federal investigators had been watching Kohberger.
Here’s what we know about Kohberger’s past and the investigation’s timeline.
Suspect moved to Washington state months before murder
Kohberger received an associate’s degree in psychology from Northampton Community College in Pennsylvania in 2018, the school confirmed to USA TODAY. Kohberger also attended DeSales University in Allentown, Pennsylvania, where he received his bachelor’s degree in 2020 and completed graduate studies in June, the university said in a statement Friday.
He graduated with a master of arts in criminal justice, according to the school’s online commencement program. “As a Catholic, Salesian community, we are devastated by this senseless tragedy,” DeSales University said in a statement.
He then began his program at Washington State University.
WHAT WE WE KNOW ABOUT BRYAN KOHBERGER:Suspect arrested in the slaying of 4 University of Idaho students
Nov. 12, 2022: Students attend party
Reconstructing the evening before the four University students were killed, the Moscow Police Department said that between 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. PT Chapin and Kernodle attended a party at Chapin’s fraternity house, Sigma Chi, on campus.
From 10 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. PT, police said friends Goncalves and Mogen were at The Corner Club, a sports bar in Moscow.
Nov. 13, 2022: Victims found dead
By 1 a.m. PT, the students’ two surviving roommates had arrived home and gone to sleep. Police said the students slept through the murders and didn’t wake up until later in the morning.
After leaving the Corner Club, Goncalves and Mogen picked up food at the “Grub Truck” food truck, then got a ride home from “a private party,” police said. All four victims had returned to the rental house where Mogen, Goncalves, and Kernodle lived, by 1:45 a.m. PT.
During the investigation, police reported that just before noon, the two surviving roommates woke up and summoned friends to their home, believing a victim on the second floor had passed out and wasn’t waking. A 911 call was then placed from the home on a roommate’s cell phone to report an unconscious individual.
Authorities responded to the call at 11:58 a.m. PT. They found the four deceased victims, each stabbed multiple times, on the second and third floors of the residence.
Nov. 17: Victims’ autopsies conducted
Autopsies were conducted on Nov. 17, and the Latah County Coroner said the four victims were likely asleep when they were killed, but that some had defensive wounds. The report stated there was no sign of sexual assault.
On Nov. 19, authorities asked the public to provide any video of the home the night of the murder.
Nov. 30, 2022: Students hold vigil at University of Idaho
On Nov. 30, hundreds of students gathered for a vigil in honor of the four students, sponsored by the University of Idaho. “The only cure to pain is love — it’s the only thing that’s going to heal us; it’s the only thing that’s going to heal you,” said Steve Goncalves, father of Kaylee Goncalves.
PAYING TRIBUTE TO UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO STUDENTS:School remembers slain students amid mystery and a killer still at large
Dec. 15, 2022: Sorting through vehicle information
Moscow Police, searching for a Hyundai Elantra that had been seen in the area, announced they were sorting through registrations for 22,000 registered Hyundai Elantras from the model years 2011-2013.
Dec. 30, 2022: Kohberger arrest announcement
Late Thursday, the FBI and Pennsylvania State Police apprehended Kohberger on a fugitive from justice warrant at a home in Monroe County, Pennsylvania. Moscow Police and Latah County prosecutors later held a news conference Friday afternoon to announce that he had been arrested.
Prosecutors and police said they were still seeking information from the public to help their continuing investigation. They urged anyone who had information about Kohberger or any other information about the case to contact tipline@ci.moscow.id.us or 208-883-7180.
Prosecutors said Kohberger is scheduled to be in court Tuesday in Pennsylvania.
Contributing: Grace Hauck, USA TODAY; The Associated Press
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