Idaho suspect changed car title 5 days after college student slayings, records show

Minyvonne Burke
Updated ·2 min read
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Bryan Christopher Kohberger, who is accused of fatally stabbing four University of Idaho students, changed the title of his car five days after the murder.

Records show that he applied to transfer the title of his white 2015 Hyundai Elantra from Pennsylvania to Whitman County, Washington, on Nov. 18. It was issued Dec. 5.

It's not clear why the title was changed. An affidavit unsealed Thursday states that his Pennsylvania plates were set to expire on Nov. 30.

The documents were obtained by NBC affiliate of KTVB of Boise, Idaho, through a public records request and viewed by NBC News. The records redacted Kohberger's name; the license plate listed in the application matches the license plate shown in police body camera video when Indiana law enforcement officers pulled over Kohberger and his father.

The pair were stopped Dec. 15, by deputies in Hancock County, Indiana, for allegedly following a vehicle too closely. He was released with a verbal warning, only to be stopped nine minutes later by Indiana State Police for the same traffic infraction. State police said Kohberger was released with a warning.

Indiana police stopped Bryan Kohberger and his father on Dec. 15 for following a vehicle too closely. (Hancock County Sheriff’s Department)
Indiana police stopped Bryan Kohberger and his father on Dec. 15 for following a vehicle too closely. (Hancock County Sheriff’s Department)

Police in Moscow, Idaho, investigating the deaths of the four college students had asked for the public's help identifying the owner of a white Hyundai Elantra that was near the scene of the Nov. 13 crime.

Indiana State Police and the Hancock County Sheriff’s Office have both said that at the time of the stops, there was no information available about a possible suspect in the slayings or any information related to the license plate number of the car that was stopped.

Kohberger, who was a graduate student at Washington State University, was arrested last week at his parents' home in Albrightsville, in northeastern Pennsylvania, in the deaths of Ethan Chapin, 20; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Kaylee Goncalves, 21.

He appeared in court Tuesday in Monroe County, Pennsylvania, and waived extradition. He was taken Wednesday night to Idaho, where he will be charged with four counts of first-degree murder and burglary.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com