The Idaho college murders have dominated headlines in recent weeks.
In the early morning hours of November 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death in their rooms in an off-campus, three-story rented home.
The victims were housemates Madison Mogen (21), Kaylee Goncalves (21), Xana Kernodle (20), and Xana’s boyfriend Ethan Chapin (20).
It is understand that the two other housemates, who were close friends of the victims, slept through the attacks.
Although police have received thousands of tips, a suspect has not yet been identified and no arrests have been made.
The murders have shocked not only those living in Idaho and the US, but people all around the world.
Here’s everything we know about the crimes so far:
The night of the murders
In the hours before the killings, many college students were out for a typical Saturday night following a University of Idaho football game.
Ethan and Xana, who started dating in spring, attended a party at the Sigma Chi fraternity from about 8pm to 9pm, before returning to her home at 1:45am.
At approximately 11pm, Madison and Kaylee went to the Corner Club bar together, before leaving at about 1:30am.
According to CCTV footage, the close pals visited a late-night food truck ten minutes later.
They were seen smiling and chatting on the sidewalk while they waited for their food, before they got a lift home.
@attentiongeneration
According to Kaylee’s older sister Alivea, a neighbour’s surveillance camera showed Kaylee and Madison returning to the house at 1:56am.
She also claims that between 2:26am and 2:52am, Kaylee made seven unanswered phone calls to her ex-boyfriend Jack – who she says was asleep at the time.
Police say several calls to Jack were also made using Madison’s phone. Jack has declined to discuss the phone calls.
Alivea said she and her family “stand behind Jack 100 percent and know he absolutely had nothing to do with this at all.”
She explained that her younger sister often called people late at night, and would continue calling them until they picked up.
The murders
Investigators have said that the four victims were killed early on Sunday, November 13, but they have not specified a time.
According to Latah County coroner Cathy Mabbutt, they were probably asleep at the time they were attacked, and they may have been in their beds.
She said it appeared that all four victims were stabbed multiple times with a large knife, and that some of them probably tried to fight back.
Cathy also said none of the victims showed signs of sexual assault.
Speaking about the case, she said: “It’s such a horrific crime. It’s hard to think that somebody, whether they live here or they were here, commits something like that and is at large.
The police said that while the four friends were being killed, two other female housemates were in the house but were not attacked. Investigators have suggested that the two housemates had slept through the killings.
The house has six bedrooms and three floors, with two bedrooms on each floor. The victims were found on the second and third floors, and it is understood that the two other housemates were asleep on the first floor.
According to investigators, the two surviving housemates called some friends after waking up on Sunday morning, after discovering one of the victims upstairs who they believed “had passed out and was not waking up.”
The friends arrived to the house, and someone from the group called 911 just before noon. Investigators have declined to release a recording or transcript of the 911 call.
Police have said that the two surviving housemates were also out on Saturday night, separately, and had returned to the house by about 1am.
No suspects identified
Investigators have not yet identified a suspect, but they have preliminarily ruled out several people.
This includes Kaylee’s ex-boyfriend Jack, the man who gave Kaylee and Madison a ride home, a man seen with Kaylee and Madison in footage from the food truck, the two surviving housemates, and the friends who were called to the house the morning after the murders.
Police have not ruled out the possibility of multiple perpetrators.
Earlier this week, Idaho State Police spokesman Aaron Snell told the DailyMail.com: “We still believe it was a targeted attack based on the evidence at the scene and how everything developed, what we know. We believe that’s accurate.”
Police are also investigating the theory that Kaylee had a stalker.
Police have also not yet located a murder weapon, but are believed to be seeking a fixed-blade knife – possibly a KA-BAR-style combat knife.
As students return to college after Thanksgiving break, police are urging them to come forward with any tips related to the murders, and to report anything “out of the ordinary”.
There will be candlelight vigils for the victims in locations across Idaho on Wednesday.
