Idaho murders: Police address Bryan Kohberger’s ties to woman’s death as parents testify
Bryan Kohberger’s parents were ordered to testify before a grand jury investigating the disappearance and death of Dana Smithers
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Police in Pennsylvania have spoken out about the possible connection between Idaho murders suspect Bryan Kohberger and the death of a woman whose body was found almost a year after her disappearance.
It emerged this week that Mr Kohberger’s parents had been ordered to testify before a grand jury investigating the disappearance and death of Dana Smithers, 45.
Smithers vanished without a trace in May 2022 from Monroe County, Pennsylvania – where Mr Kohberger was living at the time. Her remains were found last month in a wooded area, her cause of death still unknown.
A source told CNN that the accused killer’s mother had already given evidence to the grand jury while his father was appearing to testify on Thursday.
Stroud Area Regional Police Department has now issued a statement insisting there is “NO EVIDENCE that Dana Smither’s disappearance, is in ANY WAY tied to Idaho murder suspect Bryan Kohberger”.
The development comes days after Mr Kohberger was arraigned on four counts of murder and one count of burglary in Moscow, Idaho.
Mr Kohberger is accused of killing Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, on 13 November.
She vanished months before the Idaho murders. Why has her death been linked to Bryan Kohberger?
Who is Bryan Kohberger? The criminology graduate being arraigned over the Idaho college murders
Four students stabbed to death, a weeks-long manhunt and still no motive: What we know about the Idaho murders
Who is the woman whose mysterious death could be linked to Bryan Kohberger?
Dana Smithers, the mother of three, went missing on 28 May 2022 after she returned from a Happy Hour festival in Stroudsburg with her daughter and her daughter’s father.
After returning, she walked to a neighbour’s house and left the house after a few minutes. She was reported missing on her way back from the neighbour’s house.
A month later on 27 April, Stroud Area Regional Police Department in Pennsylvania said human remains have been discovered in a wooded area next to Park Avenue in the Borough of Stroudsburg.
The autopsy revealed the remains belonged to Smithers.
She had three children: a 25-year-old son, a 23-year-old daughter, and a 7-year-old daughter. She was described as a 5’5 woman with dark eyes and dark hair, who was last seen wearing a burgundy T-shirt and black jeans.
Pennsylvania police speak out over Bryan Kohberger’s connection to Dana Smithers’ case
WATCH: Moment Idaho student murders suspect arrives in court for arraignment
Dana Smithers’ sister speaks out about ties to Kohberger
Dana Smithers’ sister Stacey has spoken out about the potential ties between her sister’s disappearance and death and Bryan Kohberger.
Families of Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen plan to sue college
The families of two of the four University of Idaho students stabbed to death in an off-campus home are now preparing to sue the college over their brutal murders, it has been revealed.
An attorney representing the families of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21, filed tort notices this month leaving them open to filing lawsuits within the next two years.
The notices, obtained by ABC News, protect their rights to sue the University of Idaho, Washington State University – the university where accused killer Bryan Kohberger was a student – the city of Moscow and Idaho State Police.
No lawsuit has been filed at this stage and the notices do not reveal what claim the families may make or how much damages they may seek.
People called to do ‘random acts of kindness’ on Madison Mogen’s birthday
People were urged to do “random acts of kindness” on Thursday in honour of what would have been Madison Mogen’s 22nd birthday.
What comes after Bryan Kohberger’s not-guilty plea?
A preliminary hearing, where prosecutors had to show a judge that there is enough evidence to justify moving forward with charges of burglary and four counts of murder, was previously scheduled for 26 June.
However, on 16 May, a grand jury indicted Mr Kohberger on the same charges, effectively rerouting the case directly to the state’s felony court level and allowing prosecutors to skip the preliminary hearing process, the Associated Press reported.
The former Washington State University PhD student is now expected to appear for his arraignment at the Latah County District Court at 9am on Monday to enter a plea. According to the indictment, Mr Kohberger is charged with four counts of murder in the first degree and one count of burglary.
Each murder count states that he “did wilfully, unlawfully, deliberately, with premeditation and with malice aforethought, kill and murder” each of the victims by stabbing.
The list of witnesses who testified before the grand jury is sealed. Mr Kohberger’s indictment means that the jurors empanelled on the grand jury believed there was enough evidence against him for the case to proceed to trial.
Mr Kohberger said through a public defender earlier this year that he “was eager to be exonerated.”
He is being represented by Ann Taylor, one of thirteen public defence attorneys in the state who can work in cases where the prosecution requests capital punishment. Prosecutors in the Idaho murders case have not publicly addressed whether they plan to make that request
A tentative trial date has been set for 2 October.
She vanished months before the Idaho murders. Why has her death been linked to Bryan Kohberger?
Dana Smithers was last seen alive in May 2022. Her remains were found in a wooded area last month. Now, Bryan Kohberger’s parents are testifying in an investigation into her death.
The Independent’s Rachel Sharp reports:
What happened to Dana Smithers? Woman whose death now linked to Bryan Kohberger
Dana Smithers was last seen alive in May 2022. Her remains were found in a wooded area last month. Now, Bryan Kohberger’s parents are testifying in an investigation into her death. Rachel Sharp reports
Idaho murders victim’s father calls for death penalty
The father of Idaho murders victim Kaylee Goncalves has called for the death penalty for her killer.
“You can’t just hunt our babies,” Steve Goncalves told NewsNation’s Banfield on Monday.
“You can’t come to our state and hurt our people. It’s unacceptable.”
He added: “We’re a small state, but you’re gonna see how strong we are, and how big we are when you mess with us.”
“Here in Idaho, we can control one thing… And you just can’t hunt babies down. The line has been crossed, and we’re gonna go there.”
Mr Goncalves spoke the same day that suspect Bryan Kohberger appeared for his arraignment in Latah County Court on murder charges.