One of the Idaho murder victims' surviving roommates heard crying then opened her door and saw a man wearing a black mask on the night of the murders, according to newly released court documents.
The roommate, identified only as D.M., awoke at 4 a.m. Nov. 13 by what she thought was Kaylee Goncalves playing with her dog Murphy on the third floor.
A short time later, she heard what she thought was Goncalves saying "there's someone here," the document says.
D.M. opened her door and heard crying coming from Xana Kernodle's room and a male voice saying "it's ok, I'm going to help you."
UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO MURDERS TIMELINE: WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT THE SLAUGHTER OF FOUR STUDENTS
That's when she opened her door again and "saw a figure clad in black clothing and a mask that covered the person's mouth and nose walking towards her," Moscow police said in the affidavit. "The male walked past D.M. as she stood in a ‘frozen shock phase.’"
Investigators believe the man is Bryan Kohberger, who they say left behind DNA on the button of a tan leather knife sheath at the crime scene after allegedly stabbing to death Goncalves, Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Ethan Chapin, according to the document.
The bombshell revelations were revealed in a probable cause affidavit that was unsealed Thursday before Kohberger made his initial appearance in Latah County Court.
Kohberger is charged with four counts of first-degree murder and one count of felony burglary for fatally stabbing Goncalves, 21, Mogen, 22, Chapin, 20, and Kernodle, 20, in the early morning hours of Nov. 13 in an off campus rental home.
The gruesome murders left the small town of Moscow, Idaho, deeply shaken, as the killer remained on the loose for weeks.
As investigators feverishly processed the gruesome crime scene, Kohberger carried on with business as usual on the Pullman, Washington, campus – an eight-mile drive from the King Road home where the victims took their last breaths.
The Washington State University Ph.D. student continued teaching classes until the semester wrapped up, authorities said.
Moscow police, who worked the case in partnership with the FBI and the Idaho State Police, announced Dec. 7 that they were looking for a white 2011 to 2013 Hyundai Elantra spotted near the crime scene at the time of the murders.
It was the first major clue that tight-lipped law enforcement officials released, and the car search soon took center stage in their investigation.
Kohberger was arrested Friday at his parents' home in Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, and extradited Wednesday to Idaho.
