Accused killer Bryan Kohberger was out on a late-night solo drive the night that four University of Idaho students were brutally stabbed to death in an off-campus home, his lawyers claimed in new court documents.
Kohberger is facing four counts of murder for the slaughter of students Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin inside a rental house near the Moscow campus in the wee hours of the morning on Nov. 13.
His defense team filed the court document Wednesday that provides a glimpse into the alibi for the suspect — who up until now had no other explanation of what he was doing at the time of the murders.
“Mr. Kohberger has long had a habit of going for drives alone. Often he would go for drives at night,” public defender Anne Taylor wrote in the document. “He did so late on November 12 and into November 13, 2022.”
However, Taylor added that Kohberger “is not claiming to be at a specific location at a specific time.”
Under Idaho law, defendants must notify prosecutors in advance whether they will present an alibi defense in court.
The filing allows Kohberger’s defense team to present potential witnesses to corroborate an alibi during trial.
“Corroboration of Bryan Kohberger NOT being at 1122 King may be brought out through cross-examination of the state’s witnesses,” his lawyers state in the doc. “At this time, Mr. Kohberger cannot be more specific about the possible witnesses and exactly what they will say.”
Kohberger’s legal team is sifting through evidence and searching for potential witnesses who can back his whereabouts the night of the quadruple murder, according to the document.
“The defense has stated all that can be firmly stated at this time,” Kohberger’s attorneys wrote.
The alleged murderer was pursuing a graduate degree in criminology at the nearby Washington State University when he is accused of breaking into the coeds’ house and stabbing the four victims in their beds.
Three of the four victims lived in the house with another two young women who were home at the time of the murders but were unharmed. The fourth victim, Chapin, was the boyfriend of Kernodle and was sleeping at the home when they were both killed.
Kohberger was indicted for the killings on May 17 and he is scheduled to go to trial this fall. Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson has said he plans to seek the death penalty.
With Post wires