Funviralpark Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania TWP (WPVI) — A 28-year-old man was arrested Friday in Pennsylvania’s Pocono Mountains area on first-degree murder charges for killing four University of Idaho students last month.
Brian Coberger appeared before a judge on Friday.The judge ordered Coberger’s extradition to Idaho, where he will face criminal charges, according to court documents.
Monroe County Correctional Facility
Sources say authorities knew who they were looking for and tracked him to Coberger’s parents’ home on Block 100 of Lumsden Drive in Chestnut Hill Township, Monroe County.
A law enforcement source told ABC News Police in Idaho that DNA technology was used to at least partially identify Coberger as a suspect. They tracked him down to Pennsylvania in his car.
The FBI monitored the house for several days until a specialized team of state police and federal agents came in and took him into custody around 2 a.m., sources said.
Authorities are investigating how Coberger is related to the victim.
Idaho officials are looking for a white Hyundai Elantra in connection with the murder.
A neighbor, who requested anonymity, told Action News that he was towed from the Coberger home on Friday morning.
“A tow truck came and towed the car. I was surprised because I had no idea what was going on,” she said.
When shown a picture of the Elantra, she said, “Yes, that car.”
“I’ve seen the owner drive that car many times,” she said.
A neighbor said she didn’t know Coberger, but had seen him in and around the house in recent weeks.
Obtained by CNN
The small town of Moscow, Idaho, a farming community of about 25,000 people, including about 11,000 students, in the rolling hills of northern Idaho’s Palouse region was shaken by stabbing deaths.
Victim, Cary Goncalves, 21 years old. Madison Morgen, 21 years old. Zana Karnodol, 20 years old. and Carnodle’s boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20. Officials said they were likely asleep when they were stabbed multiple times in the early hours of November 13.
Some of the victims had defensive wounds, the coroner said.There were no signs of sexual assault, police said
The killing occurred at the girls’ off-campus home.
Two other roommates (who police said weren’t suspects) survived and were likely asleep during the murders, officials said. were on the 2nd and 3rd floors.
Goncalves’ family told ABC they do not know the suspect but are investigating him. The family says, “I’m happy, relieved, and grateful.”
Kohberger holds a Ph.D. He is a student at Washington State University, which is just across the state line from the University of Idaho.
Coberger graduated from DeSales College near Allentown, Pennsylvania with a bachelor’s degree in 2020 and completed graduate school in June 2022. The university is located about 40 miles south of where he was arrested.
“As Catholic Salesians, we are devastated by this senseless tragedy,” the university said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims during this difficult time.”
According to ABC News, a Reddit user named Bryan Kohberger and a criminology student at DeSales University posted multiple posts several months ago seeking “research participants” for the university’s study.
In a post launched in May 2022, a user asked for information to help “a research project that seeks to understand how emotional and psychological traits influence decision-making when committing a crime.” . The post linked to a survey asking detailed questions about committing the crime.
A source told ABC News that law enforcement is aware of the Reddit post.
RELATED: Timeline of Murder of Four University of Idaho Students
Police said they received about 20,000 tips through more than 9,025 emails, 4,575 phone calls, and more than 6,050 digital media submissions. He also conducted over 300 interviews when four students were murdered in an off-campus home.
Fear of repeated attacks has prompted nearly half of University of Idaho students to switch to online classes for the remainder of the semester, abandoning their dorms and apartments in their typically idyllic towns for the safety of their hometowns. has been secured.
Due to safety concerns, the university has hired an additional security company to escort students across campus, and the Idaho State Police has sent officers to patrol the city’s streets.
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ABC News, Associated Press and CNN Wire contributed to this report.
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