No suspect, weapon or motive for the crime: Mystery of four University of Idaho students killed in their beds | American News

The gray house with the Christmas wreath on the front door and the twinkling fairy lights overlooking the back patio could be any other student house in remote Moscow, Idaho.

A blanket of snow covers the ground and a trash bag overflowing with cans of beer and seltzer water is propped up near an outdoor grill.

The young women who lived here until recently were popular members of the University of Idaho sororities and threw regular parties.

They documented their lives on social media, with choreographed videos of group dances and photographs dressing up for parties.

But four weeks ago, that apparent college romance was shattered when three of the housemates – Kaylee Goncalves, Maddie Mogen and Xana Kernodle, and Xana’s boyfriend Ethan Chapin – were brutally murdered.

In the early hours of a Sunday morning, as they slept in their beds, they were stabbed to death with a large knife, their rooms splattered with blood, while two other housemates slept during the attacks.

Four weeks later, no known witnesses have come forward, there are no named suspects, no murder weapon and no obvious motive.

Moscow’s small police, which hadn’t had a murder in over seven years, are at the center of the race to find a killer or killers.

“It’s hard to say when or if this city will ever be the same,” said Robbie Johnson, the force’s public information officer.

“We can’t afford to be wrong”

There are signs that the community and the grieving relatives of the victims are growing frustrated with what they perceive to be a lack of progress by the police, even as reinforcements from the FBI and police from Idaho State have arrived.

The decision not to release certain information or investigative leads to the public is deliberate, Ms Johnson told Sky News.

“We don’t just want an arrest, we want to take the case to court,” she adds.

“We need to be sure we are looking at all the evidence and it is extensive. There are photos, emails, phone calls coming in. We cannot afford any error or release any information that could compromise the investigation.”

Police have always said they believe the house or its occupants were targeted, but did not reveal why they believed this.

The house where they were shot

Internet sleuths pored over the layout of the building. It is on the ground floor, with its sliding patio doors, that Xana and Ethan, a couple since the spring who were said to be perfect for each other, were massacred.

In one of the upstairs bedrooms, lifelong best friends Kaylee and Maddie also shared a bed when they were murdered.

By early morning, they had repeatedly texted Kaylee’s former boyfriend, who she was still close with and whom police ruled out as a suspect.

One of the more puzzling aspects of the case is that two other roommates, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, who were in basement rooms, survived.

They say they slept through the attacks and when they woke up they called other friends to the house, believing one of the housemates was unconscious.

Just before noon, one of the friends called the police, who discovered the true horror of what had happened. Police dismissed Dylan, Bethany and the friends who arrived that morning as suspects.

“The big question is why,” says Troy Lambert, a crime writer whose stepson lives in an apartment less than 100 yards from the murder house.

“Why would they target college kids who, in my mind, wouldn’t have any enemies,” he adds.

“My stepson and his roommate are playing games and stuff like that, so they haven’t heard anything.

“With the density of students in this neighborhood, it’s a bit surprising that nobody heard anything. That’s what makes me think it was someone and something organized because they They didn’t make noise. They knew not to make noise.”

Kaylee and Maddie moves

Investigators say they are busy piecing together not just what happened inside the house, but where the victims were in the hours leading up to the murders.

Kaylee and Maddie had spent the night at a bar called Corner Club with its neon yellow sign and affordable drinks, just off the main street of Moscow.

They left at 1am to walk to a nearby food truck, where Kaylee can be heard on a livestream, stumbling over her words as she orders a serving of pasta carbonara.

There then appears to be an argument with a man in a hoodie. At one point, Maddie gestures towards him and appears to be saying “fuck you sir”, before they all disappear out of sight.

Police say they have also ruled him out as a suspect.

It had previously been reported that Kaylee’s parents believed she may have been the primary target based on what they were told about the extent of her injuries compared to the other victims.

But they don’t think that’s the case anymore.

“I don’t think the family believe there was an individual target on their daughter,” their lawyer, Shanon Gray, told Sky News.

“It just doesn’t make sense with the facts that have been presented and the other information that we have gathered.

“The person may have targeted the house because there were all girls living there and a lot of people were coming and going, it was a very social scene.”

Five-page question list

The Goncalves family recruited Mr. Gray to push the police for answers. He brought a five-page list of questions to a meeting with investigators this week, but they remain silent.

“We asked why they didn’t release more information to the public,” he added. “At the end of the day, we can look at it and say, ‘great job of not releasing this information,’ or they can regret those decisions.

“I don’t know if anyone has ever experienced a murder investigation involving four students who had been stabbed, so I’m sure this is new to them.

“But they still have to make sure they’re doing the right things, and we’re here to hold them accountable.”

The missing five hours

Mystery surrounds the fate of the other two victims, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin on the night of the murders.

Between 8 and 9 p.m., they were at a party at the imposing Sigma Chi fraternity house, with its basketball court in the garden and its star-studded flag, now at half mast.

It’s less than a five-minute walk down an alley to the house where they were killed, but they didn’t get home until just before 2 a.m. and police are trying to account for those who disappeared during five hours.

In a sea of ​​uncertainty, one or more violent killers on the loose continue to terrorize this town of 25,000 people, including 11,000 students.

Everything that is happening in Moscow right now is colored by loss and fear. At winter graduation, where Kaylee Goncalves was supposed to graduate, a wave of police officers patrol the arena.

“It’s scary to be here”

“I have pepper spray and different self-help things, but it’s scary to be here, and it doesn’t feel like home anymore. It doesn’t feel safe,” says graduate Emma Bartlett , who went to college with Kaylee and Maddie and tutored Ethan in college.

“He was always smiling, so happy, so funny,” she says, “I’m so glad I got to know him.”

It’s not just students who live in fear. Treva Adkins traveled to Moscow to see her daughter Katie graduate this weekend.

“When we got to Airbnb, I was scared to death,” she says. “I asked my husband to check under the bed, and I’m a 43-year-old female.

“I noticed the windows weren’t locked, and it paralyzed me, so I closed all the windows and closed the curtains. It’s terrifying to constantly look over your shoulder. “

The lighting of the Moscow City Christmas tree took place last week and has become a focal point to remember the four slain students. Colorful ribbons are tied around the railings and reflective notes.

“Gone too soon, Ethan, Xana, Kaylee and Madison,” it read. “Pray for your family, friends and for justice,” reads another.

In a community desperate for answers and responsibility, the unknowns keep piling up.