Bryan Kohberger has named a different suspect whom he claims is behind the brutal murders of four University of Idaho students, in a dramatic turn of events just weeks before his death penalty trial. Kohberger, the man accused in the high-profile quadruple homicide case, appeared in an Ada County, Idaho courtroom Thursday morning.
Judge Steven Hippler is expected to rule on several critical issues that will help determine the course of the upcoming capital murder trial set for this summer. In a last-ditch attempt to spare the 30-year-old from execution, his legal team made a shocking move by officially accusing another person of killings the four University of Idaho students.
Shocking Claims and a Twist
The identity of the alternate suspect named by Kohberger and the evidence his defense team claims links this person to the grisly killings remain a mystery. The judge has ordered that the defense's latest filing stay sealed, meaning the details will stay confidential until trial proceedings begin.
Kohberger's lawyers—who represent the PhD student in criminology—have earlier suggested that they plan to argue he was set up and that the murders were likely carried out by two people, not one.
Hippler has ordered the defense to submit any real evidence they have to support these claims—not just unproven accusations—by May 23. He also asked them to explain why such information should be considered admissible during trial.
The prosecution will have until June 6 to issue a formal response before a scheduled hearing later that month. The judge will decide whether the jury will be allowed to hear about this alternate suspect during the trial, after hearing arguments from both sides.
This shocking development comes just days after previously sealed details in the case was released, revealing disturbing new details such as Kohberger's phone calls to a relative after the murders, his dark internet searches about infamous serial killer Ted Bundy, and troubling pornography habits.
No Respite for Kohberger
If found guilty of the murders of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin, Kohberger could face the death penalty. The four University of Idaho students were brutally murdered in a shocking knife attack inside their off-campus house at 1122 King Road in Moscow, Idaho in the early hours of November 13, 2022.
The three female victims had been living there with two other roommates.
The two surviving roommates, Bethany Funke and Dylan Mortensen, made it through the deadly night—Mortensen even came face-to-face with the masked killer during the horrifying ordeal.
Six weeks later, on December 30, 2022, police arrested Kohberger at his parents' home in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, charging him with the four killings.
At his arraignment, Kohberger chose to remain silent, leading the court to enter a not guilty plea on his behalf.
Now, after more than two years of legal delays and a change of venue for the trial, the man accused of bringing fear to a once-safe college community is finally set to face a jury.
Jury selection is scheduled to start on July 30, with the trial itself expected to commence on August 11.
