Horrific new details have emerged from the autopsy reports of the four University of Idaho students murdered by Bryan Kohberger, revealing the killer inflicted more than 150 stab wounds during his approximately 15-minute rampage. The newly-unsealed court documents provide the most comprehensive picture to date of the extreme violence perpetrated against Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, and Kaylee Goncalves in their Moscow, Idaho home.
Detailed Autopsy Findings Reveal Brutal Attack Patterns
The forensic examinations, conducted following the November 13, 2022 murders, document in precise detail the injuries suffered by each victim. The reports confirm that Kohberger, then a 27-year-old criminology PhD student, broke into the student residence at 1122 King Road through a back sliding door in the early morning hours.
Xana Kernodle's Desperate Struggle
Xana Kernodle, who was awake at the time of the attack according to the findings, suffered a staggering 67 stab wounds as she fought for her life. The 20-year-old's injuries included:
- 25 incised wounds to her upper extremities
- 23 stab and incised wounds to her scalp, face and neck
- 7 stab wounds to her chest
- 4 stab wounds to her abdomen
- 3 incised and puncture wounds to her back
- 5 incised wounds to her lower extremities
The autopsy further revealed Kernodle suffered punctures to the outer table of her skull, perforations of her jugular vein, heart, lung, and pulmonary blood vessels, hemorrhage into her chest cavities, wounds extending into the bones of her right hand, and multiple scrapes and bruises across her face, torso and extremities. Blood was found on the bottoms of her feet, indicating she was moving about and stepping in her own blood during the struggle. Her official cause of death was ruled as multiple sharp force injuries.
Third-Floor Attacks on Sleeping Victims
Investigators believe Kohberger first went to the third floor of the residence, where he attacked best friends Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen as they slept together in Mogen's bed. Both 21-year-olds died from multiple sharp force injuries, with Goncalves also suffering asphyxial injuries and blunt force trauma to her head.
Goncalves was stabbed a minimum of 38 times, including:
- At least 24 stab and incised wounds to her scalp, face, and neck
- 11 stab and incised wounds to her chest
- 3 stab and incised wounds to her upper extremities
Her injuries included punctures to the outer table of her skull, damage to her teeth and tongue, perforations of her subclavian artery and vein, and hemorrhage into her chest cavities. Police reports previously indicated Goncalves's face was rendered "unrecognizable" following the attack, with Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson confirming some injuries appeared to be caused by something other than the Ka-Bar knife used in the murders.
The autopsy documented extensive blunt force injuries including scalp laceration, bleeding around the brain, nasal fracture, scrapes on her nose and cheeks, bruising around her eyes, and patterned bruises across her lower face. Bloodstain patterns indicated her "posture and position did change during this event," according to the court filing, and her father has previously stated he believes his daughter woke up during the attack.
Madison Mogen suffered 13 stab and incised wounds to her scalp, face and neck, 10 incised wounds to her upper extremities, and 5 stab wounds to her chest. She also sustained wounds to her lung and liver, perforations of her subclavian vein, subclavian artery, and blood vessels of her chest wall, an incision of her nasal septum, and perforation of her tongue.
Ethan Chapin's Fatal Injuries
Ethan Chapin, who was sleeping in Kernodle's bed when Kohberger attacked, suffered:
- 6 incised wounds to his upper extremities
- 6 stab and incised wounds to his lower extremities
- 4 stab and incised wounds to his scalp, face, and neck
- 1 stab wound to his upper chest
His autopsy also revealed perforations of his jugular vein, subclavian vein, and subclavian artery.
Forensic Evidence and Crime Scene Details
Kohberger's brown leather Ka-Bar knife sheath was discovered in the bed next to Mogen's body, with DNA on the sheath matching the killer. Both Goncalves and Mogen's blood were found on the sheath, as well as on the bedroom door and staircase rail leading down to the second floor. Goncalves's blood was also discovered on a beer pong table in the second-floor living room, presumably transferred as Kohberger exited the top story.
Based on the autopsy findings and crime scene analysis, investigators believe Kohberger encountered Kernodle after killing the two best friends on the third floor. While Goncalves, Mogen and Chapin were attacked while sleeping, Kernodle had been awake on TikTok and had received a Jack in the Box DoorDash food order mere minutes before Kohberger broke into the home.
The report found no evidence that any victims were in the living room area or hallway to Kernodle's room after being stabbed, indicating Kohberger began attacking Kernodle inside her second-floor bedroom before also stabbing Chapin who was sleeping in her bed.
Aftermath and Legal Proceedings
After murdering the four victims, Kohberger left through the back sliding door, passing surviving roommate Dylan Mortensen who had been woken by the noise and peeked around her bedroom door. Mortensen, then 19, saw a man dressed in all black with a mask over his face. She and roommate Bethany Funke, whose bedroom was on the first floor, were the only survivors.
Terrified after seeing the masked intruder, Mortensen and Funke desperately tried to call and text their friends but received no response. Mortensen eventually ran down to Funke's room where they remained until daylight. Approximately eight hours later, after still being unable to contact their friends, they called others to the home where the horrific scene was discovered.
Kohberger was arrested about six weeks later during a raid on his parents' Pennsylvania home where he had returned for the holidays. For more than two years, he fought the charges before changing his plea weeks before trial, pleading guilty to four counts of first-degree murder and one count of burglary on July 2, 2024. The plea came after he struck a controversial deal with prosecutors to remove the death penalty from consideration.
He was sentenced to life without parole on July 23 in an emotional hearing at Ada County Courthouse in Boise, Idaho, where he also waived his right to appeal. The now-31-year-old refused to speak at his sentencing and has never revealed his motive for the attacks. No connection has ever been established between Kohberger and any of his victims.
Current Status and Ongoing Legal Actions
Kohberger is currently held in solitary confinement at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution where he will spend the remainder of his life. Since his incarceration, the mass killer has filed multiple complaints about prison conditions, including grievances about inmate harassment through air vents and the quality of food served.
Meanwhile, the families of the four victims have jointly filed a lawsuit against Washington State University, where Kohberger was both a student and teaching assistant in the criminal justice department at the time of the murders. The legal action alleges the killings "should not and would not have occurred if WSU had acted appropriately" to multiple complaints and concerns about the criminology PhD student's "inappropriate, predatory and menacing behavior."
The suit claims the college learned about Kohberger's "threatening, stalking and predatory behavior" early in the 2022 fall semester, with more than a dozen formal complaints raised by students and staff, but failed to act on these warning signs.
