Idaho Police End DNA Sweep Of Murder House: What Happens Next?

On Thursday the police department in Moscow, Idaho gave an update on the investigation into the murder of four students, saying a cleaning crew was being sent to the scene of the crime.

In November, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Ethan Chapin, 20, and Xana Kernodle, 20, were fatally stabbed in an off-campus residence at 1122 King Street.

An investigation was launched by the Moscow Police Department, however, no suspects have yet been named.

Moscow Police Chief James Fry spoke in a video that was posted to the Moscow Police's YouTube channel.

He said: "I would like to give a quick update to the community.

"Starting Friday morning we are going to be bringing in a professional cleaning crew to go to the residence and begin cleaning.

"Part of the reason we are doing that is because of the biohazards, as well as the chemicals that were used during the investigations.

"So there will be activity over at that residence and we just want people to know about that."

This has sparked debate on whether the police's collection of DNA evidence from the scene was now complete and, if so, whether this would quickly lead to the identification of a suspect.

Cece Moore, chief genetic genealogist at Parabon NanoLabs, spoke to Chris Cuomo on NewsNation on Thursday about the significance of DNA evidence.

Moore said: "In a very violent crime scene like this there is almost always going to be some DNA left behind. This is unless [the murderer] is wearing some kind of Dexter uniform, which is highly unlikely.

"So that has to be very carefully collected and protected and then sent to the crime lab.

"What they will first do is run what is called and STR profile, which is 20 genetic markers, and that is the court admissible genetic evidence.

"They will then compare that against law enforcement databases looking for somebody who has been convicted or at least arrested [for] a violent crime in the past.

"Now, most violent criminals are going to be in the system because, of course, they have been caught doing something like that before, but there are a lot of cold cases in our country where they didn't get that match.

"That person was able to stay under law enforcement's radar, for whatever reason, and so that means you have to turn to more advanced technology."

Cuomo asked Moore whether, if police and the FBI have run any DNA collected through databases, they may have already been able to identify a suspect.

Moore admitted it was a possibility and noted that police may currently be building a case.

She said: "[The Police and FBI] would certainly know more [than the public].

"They would have to build that case though. It is possible they know a lot more than they are revealing, it is probable that they do.

"But I would think in a case like this we would have seen an arrest quite quickly if they had gotten that match in their law enforcement databases."

Newsweek has contacted the Moscow Police Department for comment.