No clear answers in deaths of four Idaho college students found dead near campus, mayor says

The mayor of a small Idaho town where four college students were found dead said the “senseless” killings could be blamed on "most any scenario."

Moscow Mayor Art Bettge said a property crime “gone wrong” or a “crime of passion” were possible explanations in the deaths of University of Idaho students Ethan Chapin, 20; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Kaylee Goncalves, 21.

• Add to Google

University of Idaho campus mourning after four students found dead

01:57

The students were discovered dead just before noon Sunday at an off-campus residence when officers responded to a report of an unconscious person, the city has said. 

The city described them in a statement as homicide victims but did not provide additional details, and no suspect was in custody.

A police spokesman did not respond to requests for comment Monday.

Bettge said that without a suspect or knowing whether anything was missing from the home, a motive remains elusive.

"Patience is needed to allow an investigation to proceed in meticulous fashion," he said.

In a separate statement Monday, Bettge called the students' killings a "tragedy" that "serves as a sobering reminder that senseless acts of violence can occur anywhere, at any time, and we are not immune from such events here in our own community."

"Today, we grieve for those who were lost and those they leave behind," he said.

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCentrist think tank warns 2028 Democrats against swinging too far left on immigration

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussia’s secrecy after a mysterious plague lab death raises global alarm

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAfter surviving a botched lethal injection, Christa Pike faces unprecedented legal battle

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHunger in a land of plenty: Major food banks face ‘heartbreaking’ need, NBC News survey finds

FOR SUBSCRIBERSInflation and tariffs push U.S. holiday spending projections to a record $1.7 trillion

FOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat happened inside the room where officials tried to execute Christa Pike by lethal injection

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHow we reported the saga of the CIA officer and his gold-bar stash

FOR SUBSCRIBERSBrad Raffensperger gears up to oversee his final election in Georgia

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDiddy is punished following NBC News report on his VIP life in prison and contraband cellphone use

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘Too young to vote, old enough to be tear gassed’: French protesters’ anger swells

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDOJ gets aggressive in suing states that challenge Trump’s immigration policies

FOR SUBSCRIBERSJustice Department seeks criminal charge for former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘I just want to hold him’: USS Lincoln sailor to meet his 10-month-old son as ship docks

FOR SUBSCRIBERSSenate candidates run on raising Social Security taxes for higher incomes to prevent benefit cuts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussian operation that used ChatGPT tricked schools, a politician and media, OpenAI says

Slide 1 of 1

For Subscribers

FOR SUBSCRIBERSCentrist think tank warns 2028 Democrats against swinging too far left on immigration

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussia’s secrecy after a mysterious plague lab death raises global alarm

FOR SUBSCRIBERSAfter surviving a botched lethal injection, Christa Pike faces unprecedented legal battle

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHunger in a land of plenty: Major food banks face ‘heartbreaking’ need, NBC News survey finds

FOR SUBSCRIBERSInflation and tariffs push U.S. holiday spending projections to a record $1.7 trillion

FOR SUBSCRIBERSWhat happened inside the room where officials tried to execute Christa Pike by lethal injection

FOR SUBSCRIBERSHow we reported the saga of the CIA officer and his gold-bar stash

FOR SUBSCRIBERSBrad Raffensperger gears up to oversee his final election in Georgia

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDiddy is punished following NBC News report on his VIP life in prison and contraband cellphone use

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘Too young to vote, old enough to be tear gassed’: French protesters’ anger swells

FOR SUBSCRIBERSDOJ gets aggressive in suing states that challenge Trump’s immigration policies

FOR SUBSCRIBERSJustice Department seeks criminal charge for former Trump aide Cassidy Hutchinson

FOR SUBSCRIBERS‘I just want to hold him’: USS Lincoln sailor to meet his 10-month-old son as ship docks

FOR SUBSCRIBERSSenate candidates run on raising Social Security taxes for higher incomes to prevent benefit cuts

FOR SUBSCRIBERSRussian operation that used ChatGPT tricked schools, a politician and media, OpenAI says

Slide 1 of 1

Moscow, a rural city of roughly 25,000 people just east of the Washington line, "is, excepting recent events, quiet and crime-free," Bettge said.

In a memo to students Monday, university President Scott Green said he and his wife were "heartbroken."

Chapin, of Mount Vernon, Washington, was a freshman and a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity majoring in recreation, sport and tourism management, the memo said.

Kernodle, of Post Falls, Idaho, was a junior and a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority majoring in marketing.

Mogen, of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, a senior majoring in marketing, was also a member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority.

And Goncalves, of Rathdrum, Idaho, was a senior and a member of the Alpha Phi sorority majoring in general studies.

The relationships among some of the students were not clear. In an Instagram post Saturday, Goncalves included an image of her and several friends, including Mogen, and said: "One lucky girl to be surrounded by these ppl everyday."

In an Oct. 29 Instagram post, Kernodle wished Chapin a happy birthday and said life was "so much better with you in it."