Idaho murders – live: ‘More than one’ suspect may be at large in ‘rambo knife’ university stabbings

Autopsies have been completed on the bodies of the four students stabbed to death inside an off-campus home on Sunday.

The Spokane County Medical Examiner carried out all four autopsies on Wednesday and handed the details to the Latah County Coroner’s Office.

On Thursday, Moscow Police released the findings.

Police had said the victims were stabbed to death with an “edged weapon such as a knife.” The autopsies have confirmed that the official cause and manner of deaths were homicides by stabbing.

Eerie video footage has captured the last known movements of two University of Idaho students before they were stabbed to death along with two friends inside their off-campus home.

The video, taken from a Twitch livestream from the GrubTruckers food truck in Moscow, Idaho, shows Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves stopping by for some late-night food in the early hours of Sunday morning.

During the roughly 10-minute stop, the 21-year-old best friends appear to be having a good time, laughing with each other, taking photos and chatting to other students gathered nearby.

A mystery man appears to be with them when they arrive at the truck – but the two young women leave the area alone.

Authorities in Moscow, Idaho, have released very few details bout what happened to the four University of Idaho students who were murdered last weekend.

Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Kaylee Goncalves were found dead at a house near the University of Idaho campus on Sunday, mere hours after posting smiling photographs on Instagram.

Police have cautioned the small town of 25,000 people to remain vigilant as perhaps more than one suspect remain at large.

Here’s a timeline of what we know so far:

Ethan Chapin’s last day was spent with his siblings, dressed up and dancing.

Chapin — one of four University of Idaho students stabbed to death last weekend, with the police still searching for a killer — was a triplet.

His brother and sister also attended the scenic state school tucked away in the rolling hills of north-central Idaho.

Ethan, a 20-year-old member of the Sigma Chi fraternity who loved sports, was dating 20-year-old Xana Kernodle, a junior who was majoring in marketing and a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority. Both were killed in the violent attack on Sunday.

Two of Kernodle’s roommates and friends, 21-year-old Madison Mogen and 21-year-old Kaylee Goncalves, were also killed in the attack.“You rarely get to meet someone like Xana,” her sister said via text message.

“She was so positive, funny and loved by everyone who met her.”

The roommates of the victims are not being treated as suspects in the quadruple murders, according to authorities.

Moscow police revealed at a press conference on Wednesday that the two other roommates were present in the home at the time of the killings and were left unharmed.

Police Chief Fry said that the roommates were not necessarily witnesses to the crime. It is not clear if the other two roommates slept through the attack or why authorities were not called until noon, about eight hours after the murders.

Idaho State Police said that the roommates are not believed to be suspects and are cooperating with the investigation.

Four days on from the murders, authorities said that it is “certainly is possible” that there may be more than one killer at large.

“At this point, the investigators are looking at all possibilities. They don’t have a specific suspect,” Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson told NBC’s TODAY show.

“We’re really hoping for any information from the public to help recreate everyone’s activities.”

Chapin, one of four University of Idaho students stabbed to death last weekend, was a triplet.

His brother and sister also attend the University of Idaho. Before the murders, Ethan attended a dance hosted by his sister’s sorority.

“He was our daughter Maizie’s date, and his brother was Maizie’s roommates date,” Chapin’s mother, Stacy Chapin, told the Associated Press on Wednesday.

“They all spent their last day together, all dressed up, and had a great time. We’re all thankful that they spent that time together.”

As the mystery deepened, Moscow residents and students began to post on social media about their dissatisfaction with the explanations coming from local officials.

Following Mayor Bettge’s “crime of passion” remarks, he told the Statesman that he was simply suggesting this as one potential motive, saying: “It could be any of a number of things. The police don’t know yet. I haven’t been told.”

He added: “They have ascertained that there’s no other threat to the community. I would say it was just a crime focused on this one location.”

The same day, Annie Reneau, who said she was the mother of a University of Idaho senior, wrote a lengthy Twitter thread that summed up the community’s fears.

“I’m not sure if people who aren’t directly tied to the University of Idaho in some way understand how little information students, parents and community members have gotten about the murder of 4 students in an off-campus apt two days ago,” Ms Reneau said.

“Police believe it was an isolated, targeted attack. Okay, but somebody who was crazy/angry/drugged up/whatever enough to stab four people to death, even if targeted, is out there somewhere. I’m not generally paranoid, but that doesn’t sit well, does it?”

On Monday, the Moscow Police Department named the four students, but officials gave confusing accounts of their fate.

Mr Bettge told The New York Times that he believed the killing was a “crime of passion”, and later admitted to another outlet: “We don’t really know what it was.”

Moscow Police Chief Fry said that a murder-suicide had been ruled out and that a suspect was wanted for the slayings.

Police continued to insist that there was no ongoing threat to the public before saying on Wednesday that the community should be cautious as the suspect is still at large.

Autopsies have been completed but the results have not been released to the public. It is believed that the victims were stabbed with an “edged weapon such as a knife.”

Authorities were called to the home on King Road at 11.58am on Sunday after a 911 call came in alerting them to “an unconscious individual”.

When they arrived on the scene, they discovered the four victims dead from a knife attack.

Officials are remaining tightlipped about who placed the 911 call and why they would have said it was an “unconscious individual” given the bloody nature of the crime scene.

Police have not confirmed whether that person was on the scene when they arrived, or whether they are a potential suspect.

The two roommates were still in the home when police arrived.

The Independent has the full story: