After Mysterious Murders, Students Fleeing University of Idaho Campus

Candlelight vigil delayed because so few students remain on campus
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 16, 2022 2:00 AM CST
Updated Nov 16, 2022 6:21 AM CST
After Murders, Students Fleeing University of Idaho Campus
This Dec. 2021 photo shows father Jeff Kernodle, left, Xana Kernodle, middle, and Jazzmin Kernodle, in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.   (Courtesy of Jazzmin Kernodle via AP)

Police have come to the conclusion that there is "no imminent threat to the community at large" after four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death overnight Sunday at an off-campus apartment. Even so, "many" other students are fleeing the university, according to the AP. The killer—or killers, as Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson says authorities haven't determined how many attackers were involved—has not been apprehended. But, Thompson says, "Obviously, there's no way police can say that there's no risk, but what they're seeing indicates that there's not a risk that this person will randomly attack people." Some in the community are frustrated at the lack of information from police, NBC News reports. All the police captain would say by Tuesday was that police were "trying to identify a suspect," and that "these things are dynamic and constantly changing."

Per the AP, so many students had deserted campus that a candlelight vigil originally scheduled for Wednesday was instead delayed to after Thanksgiving break. University employees were urged by the school's president to be flexible in working with students who wanted to return home to their families at this time. Social media posts show that victims Ethan Chapin, 20; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were longtime close friends, and the four of them were shown together in a photo posted hours before their deaths. Investigators are putting together a timeline of their final hours; two of them were seen on video eating at a food truck in the hours before they were killed. Autopsies are scheduled for Wednesday. (More University of Idaho stories.)

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