The mother of one of four University of Idaho students murdered last month has revealed she fears the brutal crime could go unsolved.
Kristi Goncalves, whose 21-year-old daughter Kaylee Goncalves was stabbed to death in her off-campus rental home in Moscow on 13 November, appeared on the Today Show on Thursday and spoke of her family being “left in the dark” as her daughter’s killer remains at large.
Nearly five weeks after Kaylee was killed along with friends Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin, authorities have not named a suspect or motive, found the murder weapon, or produced a criminal profile of the potential killer.
Asked if she thinks the case could go unsolved, Ms Goncalves said: “I mean, in all honesty, that is a possibility. There’s a lot of unsolved murders.
“It’s sleepless nights. It’s feeling sick to your stomach. It’s being left in the dark.”
Her comments came as tensions over a lack of developments continue to rise between investigators and the families and the public.
In the absence of major updates, conspiracy theories have exploded while concerns have mounted that the killings could become America’s next cold case. The Independent explored that possibility in an analysis earlier this week, which noted that just 54 per cent of homicides in the US were cleared through an arrest in 2020 - and experts believe clearance rates have only worsened since then.
Meanwhile, Moscow Police have reiterated their commitment to maintaining the integrity of the investigation and only releasing details that do not hinder the probe.
Ms Goncalves raised issue with the manner in which families have been kept in the loop - revealing that she learned about the largest recent development at the same time as the general public.
Last week, police issued a statement seeking help tracking down the occupant or occupants of a white Hyundai Elantra that was seen near the crime scene around the time of the killings. Investigators said the occupants could have information about the crime.
Ms Goncalves said she didn’t know authorities were seeking that vehicle until reading that press release.
The grieving mother added that despite miscommunication problems between law enforcement and the victims’ families, the Goncalves’ support investigators’ work in the probe.
The family, who have hired attorney Shanon Gray to act as a liaison with the force, met with authorities on Monday to express their grievances.
“I have to be confident,” Ms Goncalves said when asked if she believed that the department could solve the investigation.
Ms Goncalves also recounted the moment she found out that Kaylee had been killed, saying she refused to believe the tragedy was real until law enforcement showed up at her door.
“We were running around for hours not knowing what happened because we found out from people calling us,” she told the Today Show. “And the sheriff showed up about three hours later. And I had said ‘It’s not real until the sheriff pulls up.’”
Investigators previously revealed that the victims were stabbed to death in their beds at around 3am or 4am on 13 November.
On the night of 12 November, Kernodle and Chapin were at a sorority party at Sigma Chi house together from 8pm to 9pm and arrived back at the home at around 1.45am. It is unclear where they were in the five-hour time gap.
Goncalves and Mogen had spent the night at The Corner Club bar in downtown Moscow, before stopping by a food truck and then getting a ride home from an unnamed “private party” to arrive at the property at around 1.56am.
Two surviving roommates were also out that night and arrived home at around 1am, police said. The two women, who lived in rooms on the first floor of the home, are believed to have slept through the brutal killings and were unharmed.
The horrific crime scene went unnoticed for several more hours, with police receiving a 911 call at 11.58am that Sunday, reporting an “unconscious individual” at the home.
The two other roommates had first called friends to the home because they believed one of the second-floor victims was unconscious and would not wake up. When the friends arrived, a 911 call was made from one of the roommates’ phones.
Several people have been ruled out as suspects: the two surviving housemates, the man who was caught on camera with Mogen and Goncalves at a food truck in the downtown area before they headed home on the night of the slayings, the person who gave Mogen and Goncalves a ride home from the food truck, Goncalves’ former long-term boyfriend and the friends who were in the home when the 911 call.
