Connect with us

Idaho

Bryan Kohberger bought knife and sheath online in months before Idaho student murders, prosecutors say

Published

on

Bryan Kohberger bought knife and sheath online in months before Idaho student murders, prosecutors say


Prosecutors say they have evidence that the man charged in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students bought a knife and knife sheath online in the months before the killings, newly released court documents show.

Prosecutors in Bryan Kohberger’s trial filed a motion asking a judge to allow them to present his Amazon shopping activity as evidence during trial.

They also sought permission to show that a housemate of the victims saw a man with bushy eyebrows wearing a ski mask in the house in the early hours of Nov. 13, 2022, when the killings took place. In a court filing, prosecutors said they would present a photograph of Kohberger taken from his phone hours after the killings and let the jury decide whether he has bushy eyebrows.

Kohberger is charged with four counts of murder in the deaths of Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves. The students were killed in the early morning at a rental home near their school’s campus in Moscow, Idaho.

Advertisement

Murder Suspect Bryan Kohberger Attends Pre-Trial Hearing In Idaho

Bryan Kohberger, accused of murder, arrives for a hearing on cameras in the courtroom in Latah County District Court on September 13, 2023 in Moscow, Idaho.

Pool / Getty Images


 A judge previously entered a not-guilty plea on Kohberger’s behalf. Kohberger’s trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 11 and expected to last more than three months. Prosecutors have said they will seek the death penalty if he is convicted.

Prosecutors have said they matched “touch DNA” found on a knife sheath near one of the victims to DNA taken from Kohberger. A defense attorney pushed to have the DNA evidence thrown out, but Judge Steven Hippler denied that request last month.

Court documents filed Monday said the state obtained a search warrant for Kohberger’s Amazon activity pertaining to knives and accessories, his payment methods and details of items he added and removed from his cart.

Advertisement

Prosecutors said that search warrant was narrowly tailored to March 20 to March 30, 2022, the time they said Kohberger was known to have bought a Ka-Bar knife with sheath and sharpener from Amazon, and between Nov. 1 and Dec. 6 that year, dates falling weeks before and after the killings.

In arguing the judge should admit the evidence, prosecutors said Kohberger’s Amazon activity showing the purchase of a Ka-Bar knife and sheath before the homicides made it more probable that the Ka-Bar sheath found at the crime scene was his.

Another new posting involves a map of all the times prosecutors say Kohberger’s car was spotted on surveillance video near the crime scene before the murders.

Thousands of pages of court documents have been filed in the complicated case as attorneys on both sides attempt to set the ground rules for what will and won’t be presented to jurors, but many of the court documents detailing both sides’ plans for expert witnesses have been sealed.

So it’s not currently possible to confirm an assertion by prosecutors that Kohberger’s defense team will argue that someone else could have planted the sheath.

Advertisement



Source link

Idaho

Idaho is in for a streak of clear skies next week

Published

on

Idaho is in for a streak of clear skies next week


After a round of showers came through this week, the Gem State is staying dry and clear for next week.

Temperatures finally started to feel winter-like as we take a tumble this weekend. Consistent 40’s the highs, and 20’s the lows.

Conditions on the valley floors are not expected to get past the mid 40’s. Showers appear to be nonexistent for the next 7 to 10 days.

We will also see some air stagnation in our area, meaning that as a high-pressure ridge moves in, not too much change is expected in the air. So, air quality may take a bit of a fall.

Advertisement

Not much more than cold and dry air is on the way for Idaho, but at least the sun will shine for most of the forecast.

Have a great weekend and stay warm!





Source link

Advertisement
Continue Reading

Idaho

Interstate 84 near Mountain Home back open after utility work

Published

on

Interstate 84 near Mountain Home back open after utility work


MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — Interstate 84 near Mountain Home is back open after crews closed the freeway due to utility work.

Crews closed westbound and eastbound lanes on Saturday morning from milepost 90 to milepost 95 due to Idaho Power working on power lines in the area, according to the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office. All lanes are now back open in both directions.

The sheriff’s office and the Mountain Home Police Department apologized for the inconvenience, saying they were just informed of the closure on Saturday morning.

More information regarding road closures and traffic conditions can be found at the Idaho Transportation Department’s 511 map.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Idaho

Idaho murder victims’ families file wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University

Published

on

Idaho murder victims’ families file wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University


The families of the four University of Idaho students killed in a brutal 2022 stabbing attack have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University (WSU), alleging the school ignored repeated warning signs about Bryan Kohberger.

The civil complaint, filed Jan. 7 in Skagit County Superior Court, was brought by Steve Goncalves, father of Kaylee Goncalves; Karen Laramie, mother of Madison Mogen; Jeffrey Kernodle, father of Xana Kernodle; and Stacy Chapin, mother of Ethan Chapin.

The lawsuit accuses WSU of gross negligence, wrongful death and violations of federal education laws, including Title IX. The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified monetary damages.

Attorney Robert Clifford, senior partner at Clifford Law Offices, said that the decision to leave damages “unspecified” is a strategic norm in high-stakes litigation because it prevents the focus from shifting towards sensationalism and keeps the decision firmly in the hands of the jury.

Advertisement

“Ultimately, that’s to be determined and answered by the jury,” said Clifford, who is not involved in the lawsuit. “But you have some compelling facts and the liability is going to depend on the strength of what the school knew.”

The brother and parents of Kaylee Goncalves speak after Bryan Kohberger’s sentencing hearing at the Ada County Courthouse on July 23, 2025. Reuters
Bryan Kohberger in police custody after his arrest in December 2022. Moscow Police Department
Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle were found dead inside an off-campus apartment in Moscow, Idaho.

Despite Kohberger’s guilty plea in the murders, Clifford explained the civil case remains strong because the families face a lower burden of proof – requiring only a preponderance of evidence to establish the university’s liability.

“The mere fact that he pled guilty might not even be admissible in the civil proceeding because he’s not the defendant, right? If he is a defendant in the civil proceeding, then his plea of guilty will be important. And indeed, this school might try to use that to say, ‘See, it wasn’t our fault. He admits that it was his fault.’ But the bar is different for someone in a criminal proceeding than it is in a civil proceeding.”

According to the lawsuit, WSU hired Kohberger as a teaching assistant in its criminal justice and criminology department and provided him with a salary, tuition benefits, health insurance and on-campus housing.

The victims’ families allege the university had extensive authority over Kohberger’s conduct but failed to act despite mounting concerns.

Advertisement

Here’s the latest coverage on Bryan Kohberger:


The complaint says WSU received at least 13 formal reports accusing Kohberger of threatening, stalking, harassing or predatory behavior toward female students and staff during the fall 2022 semester. The families argue university officials did not meaningfully investigate those complaints or remove Kohberger from campus before the murders – even though they had the authority to do so.

The lawsuit also alleges that the university failed to use its own threat-assessment systems designed to identify individuals who pose a risk of violence, even as concerns about Kohberger escalated. Instead, the families claim, the university continued to employ him, house him and give him access to students.

“The murders were foreseeable and preventable,” the complaint states, alleging WSU prioritized avoiding legal and reputational risk over student safety.

Madison Mogen’s mother, Karen Laramie, and stepfather, Scott Laramie, leave the courthouse after Bryan Kohberger’s sentencing hearing. Reuters
Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, on July 23, 2025. Getty Images

The lawsuit also alleges broad failures within the public university, including alleged dysfunction within campus police and compliance officers who are responsible for handling accusations of misconduct, including sexual harassment and stalking.

Kohberger pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of first-degree murder and burglary. He was sentenced to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole.

Advertisement

Prosecutors said Kohberger stabbed the four students in the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2022, inside an off-campus rental home in Moscow, Idaho, just miles from the WSU campus in Pullman, Washington.

Karen Laramie, mother of Madison Mogan, and Kristi Goncalves, Kaylee Goncalves’ mother, embrace after the sentencing hearing for their daughters’ murderer. Reuters
Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. Universal Images Group via Getty Images

Kohberger was arrested in Pennsylvania in December 2022 following a multi-state investigation.

Authorities linked him to the crime through DNA evidence, surveillance video and cellphone data showing repeated late-night trips near the victims’ home.

WSU has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit. Fox News Digital has reached out to WSU for comment.

Advertisement



Source link

Continue Reading

Trending