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The University of Idaho issued a “knife threat” alert on its Moscow campus just weeks before four students were stabbed to death in a violent attack in the early hours of Sunday morning. On September 12, the college notified students and staff after a group of students were threatened by a man dressed in black and wielding a knife. Two months later, Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were found dead in an off-campus home, killed with a “sharp weapon, like a knife.” Police said there is no indication the two incidents are connected. However, four days after the murders, no suspects have been identified and no arrests have been made. On Wednesday, officials appeared to tone down their claims that the public was not at risk, admitting that “there’s still a threat out there.” Investigators are still working to piece together the timeline of what happened, with footage surfacing of Mogen and Goncalves in a food truck at around 1.41am on Sunday morning. The victims are believed to have died around 3 or 4 am.
Basic points
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The victim’s sister urges the students to leave Moscow
The sister of one of the students killed in Sunday’s brutal attack in Moscow, Idaho, urged other students to leave the college town while the killer remains at large. “If you have friends, family or loved ones in Moscow, our family encourages you to take them home,” Autumn Goncalves, Kaylee Goncalves’ younger sister, said in an Instagram post Wednesday. “The police are saying ‘isolated, targeted attack’ but it’s isolated until it’s not. “No one is in custody, so no one is safe. Whoever did this to my sisters (Madie & Kaylee) xana and ethan is still out there and if they are sick enough to murder FOUR sweet, innocent people so brutally. he is sick enough to do it to anyone else. “Our family dreaded the answer to the ‘how’ and we all knew that no matter the answer we wouldn’t like it. but we got the worst possible answer. the most horrible way. one person against four. this person is dangerous and not in custody!!! how the police say “no threat” MAKES NO SENSE. “My sister (Madie and Kaylee) did everything right. they went out together, locked their doors. they were smart and they were fighters and that’s what happened. no one is safe, please take your loved ones home.” On Wednesday, police appeared to back away from their initial position that there was no danger to the public, admitting that “there is still a threat out there”. Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 2:00 p.m 1668692763
Police search for Ka-Bar knife in stabbing of four students
Investigators are currently searching for a military-style knife believed to have been used in the brutal murders of four University of Idaho students. Ethan Chapin, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were all found dead in an off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho, on Sunday. All four victims were murdered with a “sharp weapon, such as a knife” – with the murder weapon nowhere to be found and the killer still at large four days after the brutal crime. Scott Jutte, general manager of Moscow Building Supply, revealed that police officers have knocked on the local store several times in recent days to inquire about possible sales of a Ka-Bar knife. The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story: Rachel Sharp17 November 2022 13:46 1668691208
The victim’s father is beaten into “silence” by the police
The father of one of the victims slammed officials for the lack of information released about the killings, which he said “further adds to our family’s anguish.” Ethan Chapin’s father, Jim Chapin, said in a statement: “There is a lack of information from the University of Idaho and local police, which only fuels false rumors and innuendo in the press and on social media. “The silence further intensifies our family’s anguish after our son’s murder.” He called on the police to share information with the public and arrest the person responsible for his son’s murder. “For Ethan and his three dear friends who were killed in Moscow, Idaho and all of our families, I urge officials to tell the truth, share what they know, find the shooter and protect the greater community,” he said. . Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 1:20 p.m 1668690008
Timeline of the murders and investigation
Officials in the small town of Moscow, Idaho, have been a bit cryptic about what happened to four University of Idaho students who were murdered last weekend. Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves were found dead in a home near the University of Idaho campus on Sunday, hours after posting smiling photos on Instagram. So far, neither the suspect nor the murder weapon have been located, and police have warned the small town of 25,000 to remain vigilant. So what exactly happened in the hours before and after the students’ bodies were discovered? Here’s a timeline of what we know so far: Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 1:00 p.m 1668688808
The victims’ roommates are not suspects
The victims’ roommates are not being treated as suspects in the four murders, according to authorities. Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, lived together in the six-bedroom house with two other female students. 20-year-old Ethan Chapin was dating and staying with Kernodle the night the four were killed. Moscow police revealed at a press conference on Wednesday that the other two roommates were present at the home at the time of the murders and were unharmed. Police Chief Fry said the roommates did not necessarily witness the crime. Idaho State Police said they are not believed to be suspects and are cooperating with the investigation. This is the first time police have confirmed that other people were present inside the home at the time of the killing – raising more questions about the attack. All four victims are believed to have been stabbed to death in a brutal killing that left the house covered in blood. The murders are said to have taken place around 3 or 4 in the morning. It is unclear whether the other two roommates slept through the attack. Police were not alerted to the property until noon Sunday, when someone called 911 about an “unconscious person.” Officials are refusing to reveal who made the 911 call. Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 12:40 p.m 1668687608
Watch: Footage captures two victims hours before the brutal murders
Twitch footage, seen by The Independent, captured two of the victims Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves stopping at a local food truck for a late night meal – shortly before the murders unfolded. The video shows the two best friends arriving at the food truck at around 1.41am. Over the next 10 minutes, they are seen ordering food, taking pictures, laughing and chatting and mingling with some other youths at the food truck. When their food is ready, Mogen and Goncalves leave together. Video shows mysterious man with slain Idaho students Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 12:20 p.m 1668686400
Two roommates were in the home at the time of the murders
One of the strangest revelations from yesterday’s press conference was the fact that two of the victims’ roommates were in their home when they were brutally murdered – and yet it is unclear whether the police consider them witnesses. Moscow Police Chief James Fry said the roommates were unharmed and were still present when police arrived hours later. He added that detectives do not believe there was a hostage situation. However, this information only raises new questions about what happened after Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves returned home from the party in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Rachel Sharp17 November 2022 12:00 1668685200
Police backtrack on claims of ‘no public threat’
Idaho police have distanced themselves from claims that the unsolved slayings of four college students pose no danger to the public, saying, “There’s still a threat out there.” Officials in the small college town of Moscow had insisted there was no “immediate threat to the community at large,” despite identifying no suspects. On Tuesday, however, Moscow Police Chief James Fry admitted that the killer may still be at large, partially reversing the department’s earlier statements. Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 11:40 am 1668684008
The University of Idaho issued a “knife threat” warning weeks before four students were killed
A group of University of Idaho students were allegedly threatened with a knife by a man dressed in black, just weeks before four fellow students were stabbed to death in a gruesome killing that rocked the small college town of Moscow. University security issued a “Vandalism Alert” to students and staff on September 12, warning them of an assailant armed with a knife. The warning, described as “Knife Threat”, said a group of students were walking through campus when the man threatened them with a knife. “The Moscow Police Department received a report that a group of students were walking between the Steam Plant parking lot (Lot #14) and the Student Recreation Center on Paradise Path and were threatened by an individual with a knife,” it says. The assailant is described as a white male between the ages of 18 and 22, who was dressed in black. The Independent’s Rachel Sharp has the full story: Rachel Sharp November 17, 2022 11:20 am 1668682800
Police are reportedly searching for the iconic military knife
Police are searching for a military-style combat knife that has been widely used by US troops, according to local media. Scott Jutte, manager of a home supply store in Moscow, Idaho, told The Idaho Statesman…
