One of the families of the University of Idaho murder victims is defending the surviving roommate who saw the suspect and didn’t immediately call 911.
As we’ve reported, police arrested 28-year-old Bryan Kohberger last month for the brutal murders of the four students: Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, and Kaylee Goncalves. Many of the details regarding what led police to connect the Washington State University grad student to the crime were not revealed by law enforcement at the time of the arrest. When Kohberger was finally extradited to Idaho this week, the probable cause affidavit was released to the public and revealed some shocking evidence – including the fact that one of the surviving roommates saw him on the night of the grisly murders!
Related: Idaho Murder Suspect’s Extremely Suspicious Behavior After Killings
Per the affidavit, the roommate “opened her door for the third time” on November 13 and “after she heard the crying and saw a figure clad in black clothing and a mask that covered the person’s mouth and nose walking towards her.” OMG! When the suspect walked past her to head to the back sliding door, she stood frozen and then “locked herself in her room after seeing the male.” She went on to fall asleep. A 911 call was placed from one of the roommate’s phones hours later, and police arrived at the scene to find the four victims stabbed to death.
Since the affidavit’s release, the roommate has been criticized for not calling the police after seeing the killer in their off-campus home that night. However, Kaylee’s family is making one thing clear: the roommate is “still a victim in this case.” The Goncalves’ attorney, Shanon Gray, told Fox News on Saturday:
“She was scared. She was scared to death, and rightly so. This guy had just murdered four people in the home.”
Gray then noted that she was able to give authorities “beneficial” information for the case, explaining:
“The fact that she was able to give some additional Identification I think it beneficial in this case. She was able to give kind of type and build and what [the suspect] looked like a little bit — bushy eyebrows, things along those lines.”
Ultimately, Gray shared that the Goncalves family has no “ill-will towards her,” and there just “relieved” police were able to find a suspect and put a “name and a face to all of this stuff”:
“No one knew anything about Kohberger until he was arrested. We didn’t know anything until the name was given to the public. Obviously, since then, since we have a name and a face, I think all the families are going back and looking at if there [are] any connections between any of the victims in the case.”
Thoughts, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments below.
[Image via Kaylee Goncalves/Instagram, Monroe County Correctional Facility]
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