New details have emerged in the University of Idaho homicide case, shedding light on why Bryan Kohberger may have left one of two surviving roommates alive during his deadly attack.
Kohberger, a former criminology PhD student, was sentenced on July 23 to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole for the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.
John Judge Hippler also imposed a $50,000 fine and a $5,000 civil penalty to be paid to each of the victims' families for every count of first-degree murder.
Additionally, Kohberger received a 10-year sentence and a $50,000 fine for burglary.
Still, one chilling question lingered even as the verdict was handed down: why did Kohberger spare two roommates, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, who survived the attack, including one who came face-to-face with the killer?
Moscow Police officer Mitch Nunes noted in a newly released report that Mortensen, who lived on the same floor as Kernodle and Chapin, witnessed the masked intruder leaving through the second-floor patio area.
“She peeked out of her bedroom,” Nunes wrote, per E! News, “and observed a male described as approximately 6-feet tall, slim build, with a black ski mask.”
Prosecutor Bill Thompson now believes that Kohberger saw Mortensen, too. “From what Dylan described,” he told the Idaho Statesman, “I have a hard time imagining that the killer did not see Dylan.”
As for why Kohberger didn’t attack her, Thompson suggested he may have panicked.
“At that point, he’d been in the house probably longer than he planned, and he had killed more people than he planned,” he said. “It wouldn’t surprise us that the killer was scared at that point and decided they had to leave, not knowing if law enforcement already had been called.”
Mortensen detailed the long-lasting trauma she’s endured since the murders during her victim impact statement.
“What he did shattered me in places I didn’t know could break,” she said. “I couldn’t be alone. I had to sleep in my mom’s bed because I was too terrified to close my eyes. Terrified that if I blinked, someone might be there.
“It’s far beyond anxiety,” she continued. “It’s my body reliving everything over and over again. My nervous system never got the message that it is over, and it won’t let me forget what he did to them.”
In a separate statement cited by US Weekly, Mortensen referred to Kohberger as “less than human” and “a hollow vessel,” saying: “I believe he is a body without empathy, without remorse. He tried to take everything from me - my friends, my safety, their lives. He will stay here, empty, forgotten, and powerless.”
Funke, the second surviving roommate, did not appear in court but issued a statement via a spokesperson, calling November 13 “the worst day” of her life and outlining the profound personal impact the killings have had on her.
Kohberger showed no visible emotion during the victim impact statements. As part of his plea deal to avoid the death penalty, he admitted guilt under oath.
When Judge Hippler asked whether he had killed each victim “willingly, unlawfully, deliberately and with premeditation and malice aforethought,” Kohberger answered with a firm “Yes” for each.
Reactions to the plea deal were divided as Madison Mogen’s grandmother, Kim Cheeley, supported the agreement, telling the court: “It punishes the perpetrator of this horrendous crime, protects the public from further harm and allows all of us who knew and loved these kids the time to grieve without the anxiety of the long and gruesome trial, the years of appeals and potential for mistrials along the way."
She shared personal memories of her granddaughter, describing her as her first grandchild who affectionately called her “Deedle,” and detailed the emotional weight of her grief.
"I now have a stack of books on grief," she said. "I've attended grief classes at hospice. I've tried EMDR, a technique that helps replace disturbing visions with something more comforting. My son, Ben, his two sisters, Maddie's aunts, and I have all experienced depression and anxiety. And sleep disturbance, requiring medical intervention at times. We've all sought counseling off and on."
Ethan Chapin’s parents chose not to attend the sentencing. Meanwhile, the Goncalves family has been critical of the plea deal and previously called for the death penalty, even suggesting a firing squad as a method of execution.