Bryan Kohberger.Photo: Monroe County (Pa.) Correctional Facility via AP
Moscow Police Chief James Fry confirmed during a press conference Friday thatBryan Christopher Kohberger, 28, was arrestedin Pennsylvania in connection with the murders of Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21.
In a recent interview, public defender Jason LaBar of Monroe County, Pa., said Kohberger would likely waive his right to an extradition hearing in an attempt to get closer to his exoneration.
“He’s willing to waive because he’s lookingforward to being exonerated. Those were his words,” LaBar toldThe Washington Post. “Whether that means he’s innocent or not, it’s implicit in saying he wants to be exonerated that he’s innocent. He didn’t use the word ‘innocent.'”
LaBar is representing Kohberger for the extradition procedures but won’t be his attorney for the criminal case.
“We don’t really know much about the case,” the attorney told CNN. “I don’t have any affidavit or probable cause. I didn’t want to discuss the case with him because I’m merely his representation for this procedural issue as to whether or not he wants to be extradited back to Idaho.”
Kohberger is “shocked a little bit,” LaBar added.
PEOPLE’s calls to LaBar’s office went unanswered on Sunday.
Due to Idaho state law, the affidavit of probable cause can’t be released to the public until the defendant appears in court. Details about Kohberger’s suspected connection to the victims or why he’s been arrested are not available at this time.
Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves and Xana Kernodle.
Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle, and Chapin were stabbed to death in an off-campus house in Moscow, Idaho, in the early morning of Nov. 13, but no motive for the murders has been released at this time.
Kohberger is listed as a Ph.D. student at Washington State University in Pullman, Wash., in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology, according to thecollege’s website. Pullman is eight miles away from the 1122 King Road residence in Moscow, where the four students were murdered.
In anow-deletedpost on Reddit, Kohberger — under the username Criminology_Student — asked ex-convicts to participate in a research project that “seeks to understand how emotions and psychological traits influencedecision-making when committing a crime.” The post goes on to read that the study’s goal is to “understand the story behind your most recent criminal offense, with an emphasis on your thoughts and feelings throughout your experience.”
According to the 2022DeSales Universitycommencement, Kohberger graduated in 2022 with a Master of Arts in Criminal Justice. In apublic statement, the university also confirmed he was once a student at the university.
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On Sunday, Nov. 13, authorities received a 911 call about an “unconscious person” at the residence where the students were found. When they arrived at the home near campus, they found the bodies of Chapin, Kernodle, Mogen, and Goncalves on the second and third floors of the house.
The victims were all students at the University of Idaho and close friends. Kernodle, Mogen, and Goncalves were roommates. Chapin did not live at home but was sleeping over with his girlfriend Kernodle on Nov. 13.
Twoadditional roommates, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, were home during the attack but slept through it and were unharmed.
The Moscow Police Department asks anyone with information about the killings to call 208-883-7180 or email tipline@ci.moscow.id.us.
source: people.com
