Four University of Idaho students were found stabbed to death last month, and investigators say they have received thousands of tips from the public. On Saturday, the Moscow Police Department said it received over 2,500 emails to a tip website, more than 2,700 phone tips, and more than 1,000 submissions to an FBI link. Investigators have collected roughly 4,000 crime scene photos and 110 pieces of physical evidence.
At this point, the case is still unsolved, as police have not uncovered the murder weapon or identified a suspect. Moscow police said, “to assist with the investigation, any off or out-of-the-ordinary events that took place should be reported. Your information, whether you believe it is significant or not, might be the piece of the puzzle that helps solve these murders.”
University of Idaho students have returned to classes, but the culprit of the on-campus quadruple murder remains at large. Former NYPD inspector Paul Mauro breaks down the biggest obstacles in solving the case on the #FOXNewsRundown #podcast #extra https://t.co/Hb6gUss06T pic.twitter.com/bCwpOy0yQk
— FOX News Radio (@foxnewsradio) December 3, 2022
Just before Thanksgiving break, Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20, were stabbed multiple times in their sleep. The murders have rattled the small town of Moscow and the nation. There has not been a single murder in the college town since 2015.
Police did need to clear up falsehoods that had come in from the tip line to prevent more rumor-type tips from coming into the queue. Police said none of the victims in the homicide were tied and gagged. The department also refuted rumors that a skinned dog was connected to the case. Further, police did not find any evidence to support similar murders in Washington, in 1999 and Oregon, in 2021 were related. The incident in September when a cyclist presented a folding knife on a University of Idaho trail is also not connected since that suspect has been charged already.
Several individuals have been ruled out as suspects in the murders. Police have ruled out all roommates and persons listed on the lease of the victims’ apartments, as well as the driver who brought two victims home the night of their passing. Other men seen on surveillance visiting the victims were ruled out as well.
“We remain consistent in our belief that this was a targeted attack, but investigators have not concluded if the target was the residence or if it was the occupants,” police said. Authorities clarified other information initially misconstrued to the public at the time of the murders. Initially, detectives believed that the attacks would not bring a threat to the community. However, Moscow police are not yet sure that the public is not at risk.
