The 28-year-old man arrested in connection with the killing of four University of Idaho students last month was a criminology graduate student who reportedly conducted a survey asking criminals how they chose their victims.
It had been more than a month since Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Ethan Chapin, 20; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Madison Mogen, 21, were murdered in their home on November 13.
A SWAT team arrested the suspect, who The Daily Wire is not naming in keeping with a policy to deprive mass killers of the notoriety they often crave, some 2,400 miles from the crime scene in the Pocono Mountains in Monroe County, Pennsylvania.
Heavy.com reported that the suspect, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in criminology at Washington State University’s Pullman campus, had conducted a survey seeking to “understand how emotions and psychological traits influence decision-making when committing a crime,” the suspect wrote.
The suspect asked criminals to share the “thoughts and feelings” they had throughout the experience of committing the crime.
The survey asked criminals if they prepared before they carried out their crimes, how far they traveled to commit their crimes, and what steps they took to select their victim or target.
The report also noted that the suspect at one point had worked in “part-time security for the Pleasant Valley School District in Pennsylvania.”
“These murders have shaken our community, and no arrest will ever bring back these young students,” Moscow Police Chief James Fry said at a press conference on Friday. “However, we do believe justice will be found through the criminal process.”
Fry was followed by Bill Thompson, the Latah County prosecutor, who said the suspect has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder in addition to a count of felony burglary with intent to commit a murder. Because the suspect is in the process of being extradited from Pennsylvania to Idaho, the probable cause affidavit charging the suspect will not be released until he has appeared in an Idaho court, which may take some time.
“This is not the end of the investigation, this is a new beginning,” Thompson said, asking the public to continue sending information about the suspect and the crime.
When asked what piece of evidence or lead led to the suspect’s arrest, Fry said he could not answer at this time, as the information is part of the investigation and cannot be released until the suspect has appeared in an Idaho court. The police chief also stood behind the decision to keep information relating to the investigation out of the public eye.
Fry did say that police have not located the weapon, but had located a Hyundai Elantra they had been seeking in connection to the crime.
Ashe Schow contributed to this report.