Idaho Student Killings: Local Police Clarify Prosecutor's Mixed Reports

Police in Moscow, Idaho, on Wednesday said there is still "no change or new information" regarding the homicide probe in the stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students after a county prosecutor reportedly gave mixed interviews in the last 24 hours.

On Tuesday evening, Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson spoke with NewsNation correspondent Brian Entin to discuss the investigation into the slayings of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, on November 13.

During the interview, which was posted to Entin's Twitter, Thompson said that many details of the case had yet to be confirmed, including if investigators had determined one of the individuals killed was specifically targeted by the assailant.

The following day, Morgan Romero, correspondent for KTVB based in Boise, Idaho, tweeted that Thompson had confirmed to her in a separate interview "that one of the victims in the home was in fact the target."

"He also said he's confident they are going to find out who did this & hold them accountable," Romero wrote, adding that the interview would air on KTVB Wednesday evening.

The report sparked confusion on Twitter, with several users pointing out that Thompson had given a different statement to Entin just one day prior. Romero later posted that the Moscow Police Department announced it would be delivering a press release "to clarify the mixed messaging the prosecutor gave to one reporter yesterday and me today."

On Facebook Wednesday, police said they believed Thompson's responses "were messages to support the implication that new information had been released."

"At this time, there is no change or new information in this case, and references otherwise would be inaccurate," read the post. "We ask the public to refer to the Moscow Police Department website for any updates on the investigation."

Police added that a suspect had not been identified as of Wednesday, and that "only vetted information that does not hinder the investigation will be released to the public."

"There is speculation, without factual backing, stoking community fears and spreading false facts," read the post. "We encourage referencing official releases for accurate information and updated progress."

The latest clarification came out prior to the vigil hosted by the University of Idaho for the four student victims Wednesday night. The families of Goncalves, Mogen and Chapin were in attendance surrounded by fellow students and other members of the campus community, while Kernodle's parents were reportedly unable to attend.

Chapin's mother, Stacy, was the first of the family members to address the crowd. Chapin, a triplet, attended the University of Idaho with his siblings Maizie and Hunter, and their mother said the campus "is a special place for our family personally."

"The circumstances that bring us here tonight, they're terrible," Chapin told the crowd. "The hardest part, we cannot change the outcome. And as a family, as a Chapin family, it's important that we share Ethan's legacy and talk about the impact that he made in his young 20 years, or his short 20 years."

Stephen Goncalves also took the stage to speak about his daughter, Kaylee, and her best friend, Mogen. According to the father, the two had been friends since the sixth grade, and had gone through high school together before choosing to attend the University of Idaho.

"They came here together, they eventually get into the same apartment together," Goncalves said. "And in the end, they died together in the same room in the same bed.

"It's a shame, and it hurts," he added. "But the beauty of the two always being together is something that will, it comforts us—it lets us know that they were with their best friend in the whole world."

Further information on the case, as well as future press releases, can be found on Moscow police's website.

Newsweek has reached out to the University of Idaho for comment.