Officials in Pennsylvania have taken a person into custody in connection with the murders of four students at the University of Idaho.
Update 4:20 p.m. EST Dec. 30:
In a news conference Friday, officers with the Moscow Police Department confirmed that Bryan Christopher Kohberger was arrested and charged with the murders of four University of Idaho students found murdered on Nov. 13.
Police said they were limited by state law in regard to what they were able to release before Kohberger’s first court appearance in Idaho.
“Over the past six weeks, I’ve been continually reminded of how much our community cares,” Moscow Police Chief James Fry said in the news conference Friday. “You will never know how much your words of encouragement helped us through these trying times.”
Police focused on Kohberger after tracing his ownership of a white Hyundai Elantra that had been seen in the area of the killings, CNN reported. Law enforcement sources told CNN that Kohberger’s DNA was matched to genetic material recovered at the scene of the murders.
Prosecutor Bill Thompson addressed reporters in Friday’s news conference, confirming that Kohberger was charged with four counts of murder as well as burglary. Thompson said the affidavit of probable cause for Kohlberger’s arrest would be released in accordance with Idaho law once the suspect was back in-state.
Kohberger was ordered to be held without bond by a magistrate in Pennsylvania and is scheduled to return to court on Jan. 3.
Thompson asked for anyone with information about Kohberger to contact investigators as they continue to investigate the murders. When asked what kind of information police were looking for, Fry told reporters, “anything and everything.”
“We have an individual in custody who we believe committed these horrible crimes, and our community is safe,” Fry said in response to a question about whether police were continuing to look for other suspects.
Fry revealed during the news conference on Friday that the planned remediation to clean the house where the victims were killed was stopped by a court order.
Fry said Friday that police are continuing to search for the murder weapon used, but that detectives did have a white Hyundai Elantra in custody.
Update 3:45 p.m. EST Dec. 30:
In a news release, Pennsylvania State Police confirmed it assisted the Moscow Police Department, Idaho State Police and FBI in arresting a suspect in the homicides of four University of Idaho Students. Police said Bryan Kohberger was arrested at a home in Chestnuthill Township, Monroe County, early Friday morning.
Update 2:44 p.m. EST Dec. 30:
The suspect, identified as Bryan Kohberger, was listed as a Ph.D. student at Washington State University, which is less than 10 miles from the scene of the murders, The New York Times reported. Kohberger had reportedly been studying criminal justice and criminology.
Police served a search warrant Friday morning at a Washington apartment believed to belong to Kohberger, Fox News reported.
Photos shared to social media showed WSU police cars parked outside of a building that listed Kohberger’s office.
A pair of WSU Police cars parked outside of Wilson-Short Hall, where WSU lists Bryan Kohberger’s office. Building is locked. pic.twitter.com/cd92MvhE9T
— Matt Loveless (@MattLoveless) December 30, 2022
DeSales University in Pennsylvania confirmed to The Associated Press that a student by the name of Bryan Kohberger received a bachelor’s degree in 2020 and completed graduate studies in June 2022.
Update 11:51 a.m. EST Dec. 30:
Arrest paperwork obtained by the AP identified the suspect as Bryan Christopher Kohberger, and showed he was being held for extradition in a criminal homicide investigation based on an active arrest warrant for first-degree murder.
A law enforcement official refused to offer further details until after a news conference scheduled for Friday afternoon.
Original Story:
The 28-year-old man was arrested Friday morning in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains, ABC News and WNBC reported.
Idaho State Police would not confirm the arrest to KBOI.
The Moscow Police Department, which is investigating the homicides, said it would hold a news conference at 4 p.m. EST on Friday to discuss developments in the case.
In a news release, police said remediation work would begin on Friday at the house where the four victims were murdered. Police said the address on King Street would remain an active crime scene, but that a private company would “remove potential biohazards and other harmful substances used to collect evidence.” The police did not offer any timeline for the work.
A tip line established as part of the investigation has received approximately 20,000 tips through more than 9,025 emails, 4,575 phone calls and 6,050 digital media submissions, police told CNN.
On Nov. 13, Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin were found murdered in their rental home across the street from the University of Idaho campus, the AP reported.
Police have worked to find a white 2011-2013 Hyundai Elantra which was believed to be in the immediate vicinity of the victims’ home on Nov. 13. Police have said they believe the person or people in the car may have “critical information to share about this case,” the AP reported.
Check back for more on this developing story.
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