The King Road Killings: An Idaho Murder Mystery · ABC News

20/20: Idaho Justice

·1 hr 24 min·5 clips

A surviving roommate says she saw an individual in all dark clothing and heard, "I'm here to help you."

1. The King Road Killings: An Idaho Murder Mystery episode "Idaho Justice" follows the November 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students in Moscow, Idaho. 2. The episode is narrated by ABC News figures including Juju Chang and uses police body-cam video, roommate testimony, and family interviews to explain why the case drew national attention. 3. The episode asks what happened at 1122 King Road, why investigators focused on a white Hyundai Elantra, and how Brian Kohberger became the central suspect. 4. Kaylee Gonsalves, Madison Mogan, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin are introduced as students whose lives centered on classes, friends, and the King Road house. 5. Friends describe Kaylee and Maddie as inseparable, with one teacher saying they walked into English class in 2017 "just talking and laughing." 6. Xana's family and friends describe her as "DJ Zann," a woman who loved EDM, school events, and hanging out with her friends. 7. Ethan Chapin is described through his triplet siblings Maisie and Hunter, his sports-heavy family, and his life at Sigma Chi. 8. The episode places the King Road house near Greek Row and describes it as a three-story off-campus place with six bedrooms and a house dog named Murphy. 9. Friends say the house felt safe and normal on November 12, 2022, when the students posted photos, tailgated for the University of Idaho game, and spent time with each other. 10. The narration then shifts to the frantic discovery of the crime scene, the unanswered calls, and the early statements that "something's wrong." 11. Investigators describe finding a white vehicle through a nearby security camera and say that discovery became the introduction of the white Elantra. 12. The episode emphasizes public pressure, media crowds, and the feeling among locals that Moscow had been overwhelmed by attention from YouTubers and TikTokers. 13. Nearly seven weeks after the murders, authorities arrest Brian Kohberger early one Friday morning, and his mother calls him to say, "They got him." 14. The episode identifies Kohberger as a 27-year-old Washington State University Ph.D. student in criminology and justice who had moved from Pennsylvania to Pullman in June 2022. 15. The show reviews Kohberger's upbringing in the Pocono Mountains, where he lived with his parents, Michael and Mary Ann, and his two older sisters. 16. It also recounts his teenage weight loss, boxing, gym work, and later arrest in 2014 after his family sought help for heroin addiction. 17. At DeSales University, classmates and professor Dr. Katherine Ramsland describe Kohberger as highly engaged in classes about BTK, Jeffrey Dahmer, and Ted Bundy. 18. The episode says Kohberger later conducted a Reddit survey asking convicted criminals about emotions, decision-making, and victim choice. 19. At Washington State University, staff describe him as awkward, socially inept, and the subject of complaints about blocking doorways, late arrivals, and his treatment of women. 20. Listeners who want a detailed true-crime reconstruction of the University of Idaho case will likely stay through this episode, while listeners avoiding long investigative biographies may skip it.

As heard by us

A grave, evidence-led retelling that keeps the Idaho case focused on the facts.

The program traces the Idaho murders from the first police response to the plea deal and sentencing, using body-camera footage and timeline detail to keep the case easy to follow.

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Why you'd press play

You want the Moscow, Idaho case from the first 911 response to the plea deal.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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