When Bryan Kohberger pled guilty to killing four University of Idaho college students, he left one lingering question: Why?<\/p>\n
In July 2025, Kohberger admitted to fatally stabbing Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin\u2014only providing short yes or no answers while admitting his guilt, according to previous reporting<\/a>\u00a0from Oxygen.com.\u00a0<\/p>\n But the former criminology doctoral student\u2014who has recently made new claims of innocence<\/a>\u00a0from behind bars\u2014never provided a motive for the 2022 slayings.<\/p>\n Now, an FBI investigator tied to the case is providing a possible theory in Netflix\u2019s The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare, speculating that Kohberger may have taken his academic fascination with crime into the real world.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cI guess the question would be: Do you want to go out and experience that yourself?\u201d former FBI Special Agent Ed Jacobson asked. \u201cAre you continuing your research because you’ve got this fascination and draw to commit these crimes? But, that is just a theory.\u201d<\/p>\n Bryan Kohberger\u2019s Classmate Describes Crime Fascination<\/p>\n Before carrying out the murders, Kohberger\u2014who grew up in Pennsylvania in a working class family\u2014earned a masters in criminology from DeSales University, where he studied alongside famed professor of forensic psychology Katherine Ramsland.<\/p>\n \u201cWe studied in Dr. Ramsland\u2019s class every big killer, every little killer, killers that people have never heard of,\u201d Kohberger\u2019s classmate Lilly Karaban recalled in the docuseries of their Minds of a Serial Killer class. \u201cWe did have group projects with mock crime scenes to figure out how a crime scene took place, what kind of killer would do a crime scene like this.\u201d<\/p>\n Karaban remembered the usually quiet Kohberger being actively engaged in the course work, often asking questions and taking copious notes.<\/p>\n \u201cBrian adored Professor Ramsland,\u201d she said, \u201cIt was like a switch went off in his head in that class.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n He even conducted his own research project in a survey on Redditt asking those who\u2019d committed crimes to provide information \u201cto understand how emotions and psychological traits influence decision making when committing a crime,\u201d according to an affidavit previously obtained by Oxygen.com.\u00a0<\/p>\n As Gonclaves sister Alivea Goncalves explained in the docuseries, \u201cit almost seemed like preparation for the perfect crime.\u201d<\/p>\n Ramsland herself even speculated on whether the coursework could have influenced the murders in a 2025 interview with NewsNation<\/a>,\u00a0saying, \u201c\u201cI have to look at the framework of what I taught and wonder, did I inspire him in some way?\u201d<\/p>\n RELATED:\u00a0New Photos Show Xana Kernodle’s Final Meal Before Brutal University of Idaho Murders<\/a><\/p>\n Kohberger has never directly addressed any potential theories on his motive. His attorneys considered using an “alternate perpetrator” defense, but a judge ruled they would not be able to name any possible perpetrators at trial or present an alibi defense, according to CNN<\/a>. His defense attorneys had argued prior to his plea that he had been out stargazing in the early morning hours of Nov. 13.\u00a0<\/p>\n Could Bryan Kohberger\u2019s Past With Women Influenced His Decision to Kill?<\/p>\n After earning his master\u2019s degree, Kohberger moved across the country. At the time of the murders, he was pursuing a doctorate degree in criminology and working as a teaching assistant at Washington State University.<\/p>\n Through interviews with staff, faculty and students at the university, investigators learned that Kohberger was not well liked and was the subject of numerous complaints<\/a>, according to court documents released by the Idaho State Police<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThere had been incidents with Bryan with faculty,\u201d Jacobson said. \u201cThere had been incidents with Bryan with female students. Very demeaning behavior, mansplaining.\u201d<\/p>\n Moscow Police Chief Anthony Dahlinger added that he \u201chad made a lot of them feel uncomfortable\u201d and had a reputation for talking down to women. He was ultimately fired from his teaching assistant position on Dec. 19, authorities said.<\/p>\n Teachers also expressed concerns about Kohberger\u2019s interaction with women, per the court records.<\/p>\n As one teacher remarked in a meeting about Kohberger\u2019s behavior, according to the records, \u201cMark my word, I work with predators, if we give him a PhD, that\u2019s the guy that in many years when he is a professor, we will hear (he) is harassing, stalking, and sexually abusing… his students.\u201d<\/p>\n After the stories surfaced, investigators considered whether Kohberger could have been part of the incel movement, a term used to described an involuntary celibate group who believes women will only date a small minority of men.<\/p>\n \u201cThey believe that women are the cause of all of their suffering, pain, their lives,\u201d Jacobson told Netflix. \u201cSo they lash out and they become violent. But when it comes to using this in court, we never saw evidence that shows Bryan Kohberger is part of the incel movement.\u201d<\/p>\n \u00a0RELATED:\u00a0Bryan Kohberger’s Professors and Students Recount “Creepy” Interactions Before Idaho Murders<\/a><\/p>\n What Happened to Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin?<\/p>\n In the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2022, Kohberger snuck into an off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho and killed four University of Idaho students.\u00a0<\/p>\n Though Kohberger has never explained his actions that morning, investigators suspect that he likely attacked Mogen\u2014who was sleeping in the same bed as Goncalves\u2014 first in a third floor bedroom.<\/p>\n \u201cIt appears that Kaylee might have woken up during the time that Maddie was being stabbed, and then she gets stabbed multiple times,\u201d Jacobson said in The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare. \u201cWe believe that after, the comforter was put back over them.\u201d<\/p>\n Authorities believe Kernodle likely heard the commotion and either went upstairs to check on her roommates or ran into Kohberger on the stairs and he chased her into her room, according to court records.<\/p>\n \u201cEthan is lying in the bed at the time. Bryan stabs Ethan and then back to a fight with Xana,\u201d Jacobson explained. \u201cShe had defensive wounds all over, she had over 50 stab wounds on her. She put up a fight.\u201d<\/p>\n After killing the four, Kohberger briefly made eye contact with surviving roommate Dylan Mortensen, who opened her bedroom door to check on the roommates, but left without ever attacking her, per the court documents.<\/p>\n Bryan Kohberger Denies Carrying Out the Killings From Prison<\/p>\n For years, Kohberger has stayed quiet about the killings, until July 26 when he provided a statement to The New York Times<\/a> professing his innocence from prison<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cMy actual innocence is my truth,\u201d he said in the written statement, \u201cand the plea, hinged on by false promises and blatant disinformation, MUST be withdrawn.\u201d<\/p>\n