Idaho killings suspect Bryan Kohberger waives extradition

Dylan Stableford
·Senior Writer
Updated ·2 min read
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Bryan Kohberger, a suspect in the killing four University of Idaho students
Bryan Kohberger, a suspect in the killing four University of Idaho students, is escorted to an extradition hearing at the Monroe County Courthouse in Stroudsburg, Pa., on Tuesday. (Matt Rourke/Pool/AP)

A suspect arrested in connection with the slayings of four University of Idaho students waived an extradition hearing in Pennsylvania on Tuesday and will be brought to Idaho to face murder charges.

Appearing before a judge in Monroe County, Pa., the suspect, Bryan Kohberger, waived extradition so the case can be expedited and he can be transported to Idaho to face murder charges there. He mouthed the words "I love you" to members of his family as he was escorted out of the courthouse.

Kohberger, a 28-year-old Ph.D. student and teaching assistant in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at Washington State University, had just finished his first semester on the school’s campus in Pullman, about a 15-minute drive west of Moscow, Idaho, where the slayings took place.

His lawyer said he and his father drove home to Pennsylvania for the holidays, arriving in the commonwealth on Dec. 17.

Bryan Kohberger
Bryan Kohberger in custody at the Monroe County Correctional Facility in Pennsylvania. (Monroe County Correctional Facility via AP)

Kohberger was taken into custody at his parents’ home in Chestnuthill Township, Pa., early Friday, almost seven weeks after Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, were found dead in an off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho, on Nov. 13.

Autopsies showed all four victims were stabbed multiple times and were likely asleep when they were attacked. Some had defensive wounds, the autopsies showed. There was no sign of sexual assault, police said.

DNA samples obtained from Kohberger following his arrest match genetic material recovered at the home where the students were slain, authorities said.

“We believe we’ve got our man,” Moscow Police Department Capt. Anthony Dahlinger said Saturday.

The balcony of the home where four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death on Nov. 13
The balcony of the home where four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death on Nov. 13. (Angela Palermo/Idaho Statesman/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

The arrest brought a measure of closure to the small northern Idaho college town. But questions linger about a possible motive in the slayings and whether the suspect knew the victims.

Some answers could come after Kohberger makes his first appearance in an Idaho courtroom. State law there prohibits police from releasing most investigation records, including a probable-cause affidavit, until he appears in court.

Kohberger graduated with a bachelor’s degree from DeSales University in 2020.

CNN reported that a post from Reddit associated with Kohberger sought participants for a research project “to understand how emotions and psychological traits influence decision-making when committing a crime.”

The post was removed after his arrest.