The parents of Kaylee Goncalves, one of four people stabbed to death last fall at an off-campus house near the University of Idaho, said their daughter tried to escape the alleged killer, Bryan Kohberger, 28, but was trapped by the suspect and the layout of the bedroom where she died.
On the morning of November 13, 2022, the bodies of Kaylee, 21, her best friend Madison “Maddie” Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Kernodle’s boyfriend Ethan Chapin were discovered.
Kristi Goncalves, Kaylee’s mother, has stated that there is evidence to support the claim that she woke up and attempted to flee the situation before being attacked and stabbed. Kristi hypothesized that the killer’s plan backfired when he found his two intended victims sharing a bed.
The Goncalveses have been vociferous about the investigation since the news of the killings surfaced. Their oldest daughter, Alivea, was also interviewed for the episode. They claim they won’t just sit back, cross their fingers, and hope for justice even though they’ve been told to do that.
Kohberger’s Instagram account, they said, revealed that he was following both Kaylee and Maddie. Kohberger’s legal team, however, has vigorously refuted accusations that the would-be criminologist knew the victims.
It will be difficult for Latah County authorities to prove their case against Kohberger if, as individual journalist Howard Blum informed Van Sant, they cannot find any ties between Kohberger and his putative victims. Suppose a jury is persuaded that the supposed cellphone evidence is convincing without being sufficient to place Kohberger at the crime scene. In that case, they will be well on their way to finding him not guilty or at least in a stalemate.
Even while most high-profile cases have gag orders in place, some attorneys have expressed misgivings about a case once considered a done deal. Bryanna Fox, a criminology professor at the University of South Florida and a former FBI special agent, indicated that the case is far from closed. The defense has begun to raise doubts about the prosecution’s evidence against Kohberger, claiming, for example, that the Hyundai Elantra seen in surveillance footage near the crime site may have been misidentified.
The Goncalveses still believe Kohberger is guilty despite the lengthy delay in the case.
