Bryan Kohberger’s disturbing selfie, captured just hours after the brutal murders of four University of Idaho students, may play a significant role in corroborating the testimony of a surviving roommate, as suggested by an attorney.
New and startling pieces of evidence were recently brought to light in the ongoing legal proceedings against Kohberger, 30, that could potentially serve as a crucial turning point for the prosecution in Idaho.
Reportedly, Kohberger took the selfie at 10:30 am on November 13, 2022, shortly after a masked assailant entered the students’ off-campus residence on King Road in Moscow and carried out the vicious killings of Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.
In the eerie snap, Kohberger is seen flashing a closed-mouth half-smile while standing in an empty tiled bathroom.
Wearing a white button-up shirt, Kohberger is sporting wireless earbuds on his ears and posing with a thumbs up.
However, Kohberger’s questionable photo could prove to be the conclusive piece of evidence prosecutors need to secure a guilty verdict at trial, which is slated to begin on August 11.
Mark NeJame, a renowned trial attorney based in Florida, said Kohberger’s “bushy eyebrows” in the selfie could support roommate Dylan Mortensen’s statements to police.
“If I were the prosecution, I would argue that the picture is relatively close in time, from the time that the murders occurred, and you do see bushy eyebrows there,” NeJame told The U.S. Sun.
Mortensen told Moscow police that she saw a masked man with “bushy eyebrows” in their three-story home on the night of the murders.
She recalled being in a state of “frozen shock” as the man, dressed in all black, described as 5’10 and athletically build, walked past her.
“I believe that the witness [Mortensen] had said she’d only seen one [man] and that was a recurring theme in all of her statements, and she just remembers the bushy eyebrows,” NeJame added.
“Look, a lot of people have bushy eyebrows, so standing alone, it’s not enough. But in a case such as this, where you have circumstantial evidence, all those pieces add up to create a conviction.
“So, the fact is, why is he giving a thumbs up with almost a little bit of a sinister grin.
“I could go and put a picture of the thumbs up, we’re having a good day or whatever, and it’s not necessarily relevant to anything, or to all the multitude of things that happen in any individuals throughout the course of their day.
“But pieced together, the state would argue that would be for the jury to conclude the relevancy.”
AMAZON PURCHASE
The gruesome killings sent tremors through Moscow, a small college town in Idaho with a population of less than 30,000 near the Washington state border.
Since Kohberger’s cross-country arrest in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on December 30, 2022, the evidence in the case has been shrouded in secrecy.
Now, more than two years after the murders, Boise Judge Steven Hippler ordered attorneys on both sides to use the least restrictive steps necessary to protect confidential information.
Included in the 40 pages filed by prosecutors on Wednesday were details about an Amazon purchase made by Kohberger between March 20 and March 22, 2022 – eight months before the murders.
Kohberger allegedly purchased a military-style Ka-Bar knife, a sheath, and a sharpener, according to court documents.
A Ka-Bar knife is believed to have been the weapon used to kill the four roommates.
A knife sheath with a USMC logo was found under Mogen’s bed. The sheath also contained Kohberger’s DNA, investigators said.
NeJame believes the sheath is the most important piece of evidence in the prosecution’s possession.
“The knife sheath, that there is critical,” the trial attorney told The U.S. Sun.
“When there’s a homicide, any homicide, it’s rare that you’re going to find the actual [murder] weapon.
“The mere fact that the sheath was there is what is really outstanding because normally you’re not going to leave that.
“That’s proof of the weapon there, unless it’s shell casings or something from a discharged firearm.
“But in this particular case, the state has far more evidence than they normally would have by the fact that they’ve got a sheath with DNA on it.
“That’s strong evidence. So, the defense needs to do everything they can to keep that out of evidence.”
FRANTIC TEXT EXCHANGE
On the night the four students were killed, Mortensen frantically texted Bethany Funke, another roommate in the King Road home, saying she saw someone in the house wearing a ski-mask.
A frightened and confused Mortensen told Funke she had called their other roommates but all the calls went unanswered, according to court documents.
“No one is answering,” Mortensen texted Funke before 4:22 and 4:24 am, before following up, “I’m rlly confused rn.”
Mortensen then messaged Goncalves, “Kaylee. What’s going on.”
Funke then responded to Mortensen, saying, “Ya dude wt*,” adding, “Xana was wearing all black.”
“I’m freaking out rn,” Mortensen replied to Funke.
Mortensen then described the seeing someone in the house, “No it’s like ski mask almost.
“Like he had soemtbinf [sic] over is for head and little nd mouth.
“I’m not kidding o am so freaked out.”
A panic-stricken Funke replied, “So am I.”
Mortensen then tells Funke her phone’s battery is about to die as Funke instructs her “run” downstairs to her bedroom.
At 4:24 am, Mortensen called Chapin – Kernodle’s boyfriend – but it also went unanswered.
“I’m scRwd tho,” Funke messages Mortensen, who responds, “Ya IK but it’s better than being alone.”
About three minutes later, Mortensen again tries to get in contact with Goncalves and Kernodle, before texting Goncalves, “Pls answer.”
The next morning, Mortensen sends a series of follow up messages to Goncalves and Mogen.
“Pls answer,” she texts Goncalves at 10:23 am, and then messages Mogen, “R u up?”
Mortensen again messages Goncalves, “R u up??”
HARROWING 911 CALL
The surviving roommates called police at 11:58 am, nearly seven hours after the four victims were fatally stabbed.
“Hi, something is happening. Something happened in our house. We don’t know what,” a woman at the scene tells the police dispatcher, according to a transcript of the call.
“Um, one of our – one of the roommates who’s passed out and she was drunk last night and she’s not waking up,” another woman conveys to the dispatch.
“Oh, and they saw some man in their house last night,” one of the people at the scene added.
“Is she breathing?” the dispatcher asks, before being told, “No.”
“I think we have a homicide,” another man tells the police dispatch.
Kohberger is set to face trial later this year.
