Affidavit released for man accused of murdering Idaho college students

LATAH COUNTY, Idaho - Authorities released the probable cause affidavit for Bryan Kohberger, the man accused of killing four college students inside a home near the University of Idaho in Moscow on November 13, 2022.

Kohberger has been charged with four counts of murder and one count of burglary in connection with the deaths of Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin.

According to the probable cause affidavit, a roommate who was not injured in the incident saw a man in black clothing and a mask that covered his mouth and nose walk out of the King Road residence the night of the murders.

The roommate didn't say she recognized the man but described him as being 5 feet 10 inches or taller, not very muscular but athletically built and with bushy eyebrows.

After seeing the man, the roommate locked herself in her room, reports said.

Prior to that, the roommate reported being awoken at around 4 a.m. by what she thought was one of the victims playing with her dog.

A short time later, she said she thought she heard one of the victims say something along the lines of, "there's someone here," reports said.

The roommate looked out of her bedroom and did not see anyone.

She opened her door a second time when she thought she heard crying from one of the victims' rooms, police said.

At 4:17 a.m., a security camera near the King Road residence picked up audio of what sounded like voices or a whimper followed by a loud thud, according to the probable cause affidavit.

When the roommate opened her door a third time, after hearing crying, she saw the man in black clothing.

Investigators found what appeared to be a tan leather knife sheath lying next to one of the victims. The Idaho State Lab later found a single source of male DNA on a button on the sheath, reports said.

Agents in Pennsylvania recovered trash from Kohberger's family home in Pennsylvania and, through testing, determined a DNA profile obtained from the trash was related to the DNA found on the sheath, according to police.  

Video footage in the area of the King Road residence indicated a white sedan, later identified as a white Hyundai Elantra, was seen near the residence a number of times on the night of the murders.

Other cameras in the area and near Washington State University captured the Elantra traveling between the King Road residence and the university the same night.

An officer with Washington State University queried white Elantras registered at the university and discovered a 2015 Elantra registered to Kohberger.

Kohberger's Washington state driver's license information and photograph showed his physical description matched the description of the man the roommate said she saw in the house on the night of the murders, according to the affidavit.

The Elantra originally had a Pennsylvania plate on it.

On November 18, Kohberger registered the vehicle with Washington and received a Washington license plate.

In December, Kohberger's Elantra was captured traveling through Colorado, Indiana and Pennsylvania. Video footage captured the vehicle in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, where Kohberger has family.

Law enforcement investigated the locations where Kohberger's cell phone utilized cellular towers around the time of the murders and determined the following:

• At 2:42 a.m. on November 13, Kohberger's phone was using cellular resources in the Pullman, Washington, area, where his residence is
• At 2:47 a.m., the cell phone left that area and moved southeast
• At 2:47 a.m., the cell phone stopped reporting to the network, indicating the phone was in an area without cellular coverage, the network connection was disabled or the phone was turned off
• Kohberger's phone did not report to the network again until around 4:48 a.m. on Idaho state highway 95, south of Moscow
• At 5:30 a.m., the phone used cellular resources in Pullman

A few hours after the murders, Kohberger's cellphone used cellular resources serving the King Road area before using resources near his residence in Pullman.

Cell phone history collected by investigators showed Kohberger's cell phone was in the area of King Road at least 12 times between June 2022 and November 13, 2022.

Read the full affidavit below: