MOSCOW, Idaho — In the early hours of the morning when four students died in a brutal stabbing near the University of Idaho, several unanswered phone calls were made from one of the victim’s phones to her longtime boyfriend. her, deepening the mystery of their deaths nearly a week later. murders.
The coroner who conducted autopsies on four friends said some of the victims appeared to have fought back and that they may have been attacked while sleeping in their beds.
The deadly stabbings in the university town of Moscow, Idaho, have worried students and residents alike as local officials sometimes make contradictory statements and have yet to identify any suspects or suspects. which engine.
The few details they revealed have raised more questions as detectives, internet investigators and the victim’s next of kin try to piece together who might have had a motive to kill the four young men after a Saturday night. having fun at university.
Three of the victims — Madison Mogen, 21; Kaylee Goncalves, 21 years old; and Xana Kernodle, 20 years old — lived at the house not far from the campus where the attack took place, while the fourth victim, 20-year-old Ethan Chapin, was there to visit his girlfriend, Ms. Kernodle. Here are other important facts.
Two roommates survived the attack.
Police said while four friends were killed, two other roommates were also in the home but were not attacked. Both are women.
Investigators said they do not believe either person was involved in the crime. But no one called 911 until just before noon on Sunday – hours after the attack, which authorities said took place in the early hours of the morning. The possibility that hours passed between the case and when someone called 911 suggests the roommates may have been asleep after the attack, although police have not yet explained the delay.
Cathy Mabbutt, the Latah County coroner, said all the victims appeared to have been stabbed multiple times with a large knife. She said, based on the time of night, it was likely that they were asleep when attacked. Ms Mabbutt said she believes at least one victim, and possibly more, tried to fight off the attacker.
“It was a terrible crime,” she said. “It’s hard to think that someone, whether they live here or they’ve been here, would commit such a crime and be on the run.”
Ms Mabbutt said none of the victims showed signs of sexual assault and reports of poison had yet to be completed.
One victim’s phone records show calls to her boyfriend before she was killed.
There were seven unanswered phone calls from one of the victims, Ms Goncalves, to her longtime boyfriend early Sunday morning, according to her sister, Alivea Goncalves, based on phone logs. which you can download from your phone provider.
Goncalves said the first call to the man, Jack DuCoeur, was at 2:26 a.m., and there were six more calls over the next 26 minutes, with the last call at 2:52, Goncalves said. She said Mr. DuCoeur, also a student at the university, missed them because he was sleeping and her sister’s phone account didn’t show any other calls.
Ms Goncalves said Mr DuCoeur was a childhood friend of her sister and they dated for many years until recently, when they decided to split amicably. Ms Goncalves said she and her family are “100% behind Jack and know he has absolutely nothing to do with this.”
She also says that the number of calls isn’t unusual: Kaylee Goncalves often calls people until they pick up, even to ask a trivial question like what should she have for breakfast, sister she speaks.
Bill Thompson, the top Latah County prosecutor, said investigators were looking at cell phone tower data and social media information to try to determine who was in the area immediately at the time. the point of the murder.
The victims spent the night interacting.
It was a typical Saturday evening in Moscow, with many students on campus hanging out after watching a University of Idaho football game.
Mr Chapin and Ms Kernodle, who have been dating since the spring semester, attended a party at the Sigma Chi fraternity from about 8 p.m. to 9 p.m. near the home of the subsequent attack, authorities said. said.
Ms. Mogen and Ms. Goncalves went to the Corner Club bar together around 11pm, staying there until 1:30am.
A live video from a popular late-night food truck shows Ms Mogen and Ms Goncalves at the van at around 1:40am. The two mingled in the area, chatting and smiling before grabbing their food and departing. Police said a “private party” brought them home.
Authorities said all four friends returned to the rental house on the south side of campus at around 1:45 a.m
No one was arrested.
There have been no arrests, although police appear to have ruled out some.
This included a man seen in video footage taken at the food truck, investigators said, as well as two roommates who were at home during the attack.
Authorities have left open the possibility that there may be more than one culprit.
Investigators contacted local businesses to see if someone had recently purchased a fixed blade knife from them.
The authorities have gone back to the previous statement.
In the first days after the murder, the Moscow Police Department downplayed people’s fears of a killer on the loose, saying on the day of the attack that the department “does not believe there is an ongoing public risk” and, two days laterthat “there is no imminent threat to the general public.”
Then on Wednesday – three days after the murder – Sheriff James Fry backed down from earlier assurances. “We cannot say that there is no threat to the community,” he said at a news conference.
Faces back was among a number of conflicting comments from city and county officials.
Art Bettge, the mayor of Moscow, told The New York Times the day after the murder that the case was considered a “crime of passion,” but later said he could not say for sure.
A consistent message from the police was that the attack appeared to have been targeted.
Moscow has not recorded a single murder in seven years.
Moscow is a community of about 25,000 people on the border of Washington State, and the university has 11,000 students.
The city has not recorded a murder in more than seven years. Students said in interviews that they often feel safe walking around town late at night or leaving their bicycles unlocked around campus. But after the murder, many students leave school early for the Thanksgiving break, worried about an apparent killer on the run.
Some of the students who stayed have begun taking more precautions and traveling in groups. A coffee shop tells guests it will close early so employees can go home before dark.
Here’s what we know about the victims.
Madison Mogen, who was called Maddie, was a senior at Coeur d’Alene, majoring in marketing. Her grandmother, Kim Cheeley, said Ms. Mogen was always a gentle and caring person, keeping many lasting friendships and close relationships with an extended family.
Ms. Mogen’s boyfriend, Jake Schriger, said she is excited about her graduation next year and talks about wanting to explore other parts of the world. Ms. Mogen always spreads positivity and brings acts of kindness to others, Mr. Schriger said, adding that he hopes people remember her for the love she has for others.
“I really have no words to describe her — how wonderful she is and what a wonderful person she is,” said Mr.
Kaylee Goncalvesfrom Rathdrum, Idaho, is graduating in early December and plans to move to Austin, Texas with one of her close friends in June. The friend, Jordyn Quesnell, said Ms. Goncalves has taken care of her. secured a position at a marketing firm and was excited to explore more of the country.
“We wanted that adventure,” Ms. Quesnell said. “I would say, ‘Let’s do this,’ and she would say, ‘Down!’”
Alivea Goncalves said her sister and Ms. Mogen served as bridesmaids for her wedding. Her sister still shares a dog with her recent boyfriend, she said, and the two seem likely to get back together.
Ethan Chapin, are from Conway, Wash., was one of three triplets and spent most of November 12, the day before the murder, with both of his siblings, who were also University of Idaho students, their mother, Stacy Chapin, said. . In the evening they all attended a dance organized by his sister’s sorority, she said.
Ms Chapin said: “My children are so grateful to have spent such a good time with him. “He really is the life of the party. He makes everyone laugh. He’s just the kindest person.
Mr. Chapin played basketball in high school and was known by friends and family members for his always smiling face since he was a child. Ms Chapin described her son as “the brightest light”.
Xana grow up in Idaho but has spent time in Arizona in recent years, according to an interview her father, Jeffrey Kernodle, donated to Arizona Television.
Mr Kernodle told the station that his daughter was strong-willed and enjoyed an independent life at university.
He said his daughter showed up to try to fend off her attacker, an account supported by Ms Mabbutt, the coroner. Mr. Kernodle expressed shock that she could have been killed while staying with friends at home, and said he also did not know who might have carried out the attacks.
Mr Kernodle said: “She was always with her friends.
Serge F. Kovaleski contribution report. Susan C. Beach and Sheelagh McNeill Contributing research.
