November 23, 2022 police update on University of Idaho student killings

By Elise Hammond, Mike Hayes and Meg Wagner, CNN

Updated 10:17 PM ET, Wed November 23, 2022
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5:11 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

This "took our innocence": Moscow Police will amp up law enforcement presence after university break

From CNN's Elise Hammond

(Angela Palermo/Idaho Statesman/Tribune News Service/Getty Images/FILE)
(Angela Palermo/Idaho Statesman/Tribune News Service/Getty Images/FILE)

Moscow Police say the law enforcement presence is going to be "very heavy" around the University of Idaho after the holiday break in the light of the killings of four students.

Moscow Police Chief James Fry said there will be "a high impact of patrol officers and troopers" as well as Latah County Sheriff's Department deputies in the area.

In addition to heightened security, police are also urging members of the community to do their part and be vigilant when they are out.

“In light of this, and maybe we should always look at it this way, vigilance — always traveling in pairs, knowing where you’re going, telling someone when you arrive and just that kind of general awareness," Moscow Police Capt. Roger Lanier said at a news conference Wednesday.

“Maybe we’ve should, as a community, have always been doing that. This in a way, took our innocence," he added.

Chief Fry reiterated calls for awareness, but emphasized: "We do care."

“We do want to provide a safe environment. We will continue to work hard and we will continue to do everything we can," Fry said. “We’re here to provide that safety," he added.

Both Lanier and Fry asked for anyone in the community to report anything suspicious and let police handle it from there.

4:50 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

A candlelight vigil to honor Idaho students will be held next week

From CNN’s Cheri Mossburg

A candlelight vigil to honor the victims of the University of Idaho stabbing will be held Nov. 30 at 5 p.m. local time, University President Scott Green announced Wednesday.

“We’re going to make a final determination on the location early next week,” Green said, adding that by then they will have a better sense of the incoming weather forecast.

“We’re anticipating a large turnout of community members as well as university members – students, staff, faculty and staff at that particular event,” Green said.

All families have been invited to attend.

4:39 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

Investigators have collected more than 100 pieces of evidence, police say

From CNN's Elise Hammond

Idaho State Police Colonel Kedrick Wills
Idaho State Police Colonel Kedrick Wills (KXLY)

Idaho State Police Col. Kedrick Wills said there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes as several different agencies work to investigate the murder of four college students.

Wills said the State Police are supporting the Moscow Police Department, which is the lead agency on the case. The FBI is also assisting, he said.

He said at a news conference Wednesday, investigators have collected 103 pieces of evidence and have taken about 4,000 photos. They have also conducted "multiple" 3D scans of the house, according to Wills.

“I hope that you understand that gives a little bit of a perception of just how complex this case is," Wills said.

So far, police have processed more than 1,000 tips from the community and have conducted more than 150 interviews.

“Leads from the community is important," he said.

“No tip is too small,” he added, urging anyone with any kind of information to provide that to police, promising that it will be followed up on.

Wills said he has confidence in the investigation, but he urged people to be patient, saying, "we're not willing to sacrifice speed for quality."

4:40 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

Moscow police release list of people they believe were not involved in the killings

Moscow Police Capt. Roger Lanier said during the news conference that there are multiple people that police believe were not involved in the deaths of four University of Idaho students found inside their rental home.

Lanier said the list of people police believe were not involved include the two surviving roommates, a man "seen in a grub truck video circulating on the internet," and a "private party who drove Kaylee [Goncalves] and Madison [Mogen] home" earlier that night.

Lanier said police have also ruled out "individuals that spoke to the dispatcher on the 911 call" as suspects.

He also said that police do not suspect a man "that Caylee and Madison called" on Nov. 13 in the case.

4:20 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

Police lay out timeline of the University of Idaho killings

From CNN's Elise Hammond

Moscow Police Captain Roger Lanier
Moscow Police Captain Roger Lanier (KXLY)

Moscow Police Capt. Roger Lanier laid out a timeline of the killings of four University of Idaho students.

Lanier, speaking at a news conference Wednesday, said all of the students living in the rental house arrived home in the early morning hours of Nov. 13. All times are local:

  • 1 a.m.: The two surviving roommates arrived back to the house.
  • 1:45 a.m.: Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen arrived home from a bar and a street food vendor.
  • 1:45 a.m.: Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle arrived home from a fraternity.
  • 11:58 a.m.: The next morning, a 911 call was place from inside the house, using one of the surviving roommates phones. “The call reported an unconscious person," Lanier said. “During that call the dispatcher spoke to multiple people who were on scene," he added.
  • When police arrived: Officers found two victims on the second floor and the other two victims on the third floor, Lanier said. Autopsy reports show they were stabbed multiple times "and were likely asleep during the attack," he added.

Lanier said police will continue to put "all of our resources into investigating these murders," adding that personnel will work through the Thanksgiving holiday.

4:17 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

Police: "No suspects have been named or arrested" in Idaho killings

Moscow Police Captain Roger Lanier 
Moscow Police Captain Roger Lanier  (KXLY)

It's been 10 days since the bodies of four University of Idaho students were found inside their rental home in Moscow, and police have not named a suspect.

"No suspects have been named or arrested," Moscow Police Capt. Roger Lanier said at a Wednesday news conference addressing the killings.

Moscow Police Chief James Fry said police are still accepting tips and urged anyone with information to contact officials.

4:10 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

Siblings remember Idaho college student killed near campus: She "didn't dwell on any of the negatives"

From CNN's Melissa Alonso 

Steven and Alivea Goncalves, siblings of Kaylee Goncalves
Steven and Alivea Goncalves, siblings of Kaylee Goncalves (CNN)

Alivea Goncalves, sister of Kaylee Goncalves, who was one of four University of Idaho students killed at their off-campus home, told CNN's Jim Sciutto she was "a goofball" who "didn't dwell on any of the negatives." 

Kaylee liked to prank family and friends, her sister told CNN on Tuesday. "She was really fun" and loved to laugh, Alivea said.  

"She would block me on Instagram if I borrowed shirts without asking—that was not uncommon," Alivea said chuckling.  "She was a college student, you know, she would shamelessly call her boyfriend...four or five, six times in a row—that was not uncommon," she said. 

"She's a hard worker," said Kaylee's brother Steven who wants to help find the person(s) responsible for his sister's murder. "Just sitting in my bed and crying myself to sleep isn't going do her any justice and that's not what she would want he to do, she'd want me to stay active, he said.  

Steven said he's doing what he "can to spread the message, and hope that we can find this suspect or suspects." 

3:30 p.m. ET, November 23, 2022

Police will give an update soon on the killings of 4 University of Idaho students

From CNN's Natasha Chen, Paradise Afshar, Steve Almasy and Eliott C. McLaughlin,

Authorities are scheduled to provide a Wednesday afternoon update into the fatal stabbing of four University of Idaho students as police sift through what could be key video evidence and more than 700 tips that have arrived in the 10 days since the bodies were found.

After investigators opened a video submission portal, substantial information flowed in, Idaho State Police spokesperson Aaron Snell said.

“Now, it’s a matter of processing all of that and gleaning what we can out of (the videos),” he said, adding it’s unclear how many recordings have been submitted.

Still, authorities are no closer to naming a suspect, though investigators have interviewed more than 90 people and are making progress, he said.

They’re also working to cobble together a timeline from tips and other information in hopes that understanding the sequence of events will help them home in on important leads, he said.

The bodies of Ethan Chapin, 20, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Madison Mogen, 21, were found November 13 after police were called to their rental home in Moscow, a short walk south of campus, officials have said. The victims had been stabbed to death, a coroner said.

Wednesday afternoon’s news conference is expected to provide details.