According to prosecutors, Bryan Kohberger had plans to accuse someone else of committing the Idaho murders.
Bryan Kohberger intended to point the finger onto others for carrying out his horrifying killings. According to court documents obtained, the former criminology student's attempt to introduce potential new suspects as alternate perpetrators of the crimes was denied by Ada County District Court Judge Steven Hippler six days prior to his guilty plea to the 2022 killings of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.
"Were each socially connected to one or more of the victims, interacted with one or more of the victims at social events in the hours prior to the homicide, lived within walking distance of the crime scene, and were familiar with the layout of the victims' home from prior social events," the judge wrote in the filing, describing the relationship that three of the four names that Kohberger had provided to the victims.
In the court documents, Hippler noted that all four of the people in Kohberger's petition cooperated with the police, including giving DNA and fingerprints. However, he also mentioned that the three friends lived close to the now-demolished King Road house, which ultimately ran counter to the investigation's conclusion that "the perpetrator drove [a] vehicle to the crime scene."
Register for Tekedia Mini-MBA edition 19 (Feb 9 – May 2, 2026): big discounts for early bird.
Tekedia AI in Business Masterclass opens registrations.
Join Tekedia Capital Syndicate and co-invest in great global startups.
Register for Tekedia AI Lab: From Technical Design to Deployment (next edition begins Jan 24 2026).
Documents from the Moscow Police Department that were retrieved indicated that one of Kohberger's potential new suspects might have been victim Goncalves' ex-boyfriend, even though none of them were named in court files.
Authorities note that on May 29, 13 days after Kohberger's motion containing the potential new suspects was submitted, a person named J.D. "was scheduled to provide fingerprints" to police.
According to additional police records retrieved, Goncalves' acquaintance identified an ex-boyfriend named J.D. as someone with whom she had "no obvious issues" in an interview with police in November 2022. Additionally, according to the records, Goncalves and that same ex-partner shared their dog, Murphy.
As part of a plea agreement, Kohberger admitted to all four killings after the judge rejected the defense's other suspicions. On July 23, he was given a life sentence without the chance of release.