MOSCOW, Idaho — Before Kohberger’s change of plea, the prosecution presented a substantial portion of its case against him. They highlighted a timeline indicating the groundwork for the crime began several months earlier.
In court on Wednesday, State Prosecutor Bill Thompson presented his argument for Kohberger’s guilt, noting a major piece of evidence indicates Kohberger’s phone was found to have been near the King Road home more than 20 times prior to the murder.
Bryan Kohberger moved to Pullman in June of 2022 to study at WSU. Prosecuting evidence shows starting on July 9 of that year, his cellphone began frequently connecting to a tower near the 1122 King Road home in Moscow.
Between July and November 13, the night of the murders, his phone linked to a cell tower near the property 23 times, mostly late at night.
“We do not have evidence that the defendant had direct contact with 1122 or with the residents of 1122, but we can put his phone in that are on those times,” Thompson said.
On the night of the murders, Kohberger allegedly turned off his phone and drove to Moscow. Surveillance captured his car near the crime scene. Around 4 a.m., the state believes he used a KA-BAR knife, that records show he bought in March 2022, to kill four students, leaving the sheath behind.
An awake roommate “saw him leave the house,” Thompson said.
Security footage showed his car speeding away, and he turned his phone back on shortly after says the state, adding his vehicle was later seen returning to Pullman.
“Mr. Kohberger, went to what we would call DMV motor vehicle licensing here in Idaho in Pullman to change his car registration from Pennsylvania to Washington,” Thompson said, where a front license plate is required.
The prosecutor says security footage shows Kohberger’s car without a front plate.
After the semester, Kohberger returned to Pennsylvania. And the FBI collected DNA from his family’s trash, matching crime DNA closely to Kohberger’s father.
Once authorities issued an arrest warrant, they searched his family’s home, apartment, and car, “meticulously cleaned inside,” Thompson said, suggesting an attempt to hide evidence.
A sample of Kohberger’s DNA later matched the DNA found on the knife sheath left behind. However, the knife used to kill the four students is still unaccounted for.
The state has not yet mentioned a possible motive for the murders.
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