2022 Idaho student murders
death of four students at the University of Idaho on November 13, 2022
In the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students—Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, and Xana Kernodle—were fatally stabbed in an off-campus house in Moscow, Idaho. On December 30, authorities arrested 28-year-old Bryan Christopher Kohberger in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, on four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary. At the time of the murders, Kohberger was a PhD student completing his first semester at Washington State University in Pullman, Washington, located less than eight miles (13 km) west of Moscow.
Investigators recovered a leather knife sheath on a bed next to one of the victims, which yielded touch DNA matching a single male profile. Surveillance footage collected from surrounding neighborhoods showed a white Hyundai Elantra traveling near the victims' residence multiple times during the estimated timeframe of the attack; meanwhile, an analysis of cellular network records indicated that a mobile device associated with Kohberger was registered in the vicinity of the victims' residence at least twelve times in the months preceding the attacks, although its signal was absent during the hours surrounding the slayings. Investigators also used investigative genetic genealogy to link the DNA profile extracted from the knife sheath to public genealogical databases, leading authorities to target Kohberger as the primary suspect.
Prosecutors initially sought the death penalty. On July 2, 2025, Kohberger entered a guilty plea to all charges against him as part of a deal to avoid the death penalty. Three weeks later, he was sentenced to four consecutive terms of life imprisonment in prison without the possibility of parole, plus ten years for burglary.
Background
During the fall 2022 semester, five female University of Idaho students lived in a rented off-campus residence in the rural college town of Moscow, Idaho.
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The record creator and administrative purpose are central evidence, because official documentation reflects both action and institutional priorities. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 21, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q115288121. Authority coordinates are 46.722, -117.011. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2022 and 2025.
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