Kristi, the mother of Kaylee Goncalves, one of the four University of Idaho students murdered in November 2022, has come forward with harrowing new details about her daughter’s final moments.
The devastating account was shared in a public social media post after 30-year-old Bryan Kohberger pleaded guilty in a controversial plea deal that spared him from capital punishment.
The decision poured salt in the wound of the Goncalves family, who long advocated for Kohberger to have his life taken away from him and accused Latah County prosecutors of “blindsiding” them by offering the culprit life sentence in exchange for his confession.
“[He’s] literally too afraid to die, but he wasn’t afraid to [take my daughter’s life]. Kaylee wasn’t offered a plea deal,” the mother said.
The mother of Kaylee Goncalves revealed disturbing details about the attack that took her life
Image credits: Kyle Green-Pool/Getty Images
Kaylee’s mother accused the mur*erer of not only fatally stabbing Kaylee, but also brutally beating her in the face and head as she fought for her life.
Image credits: kayleegoncalves
“He went into her house with the intention to take her life and he did,” Kristi wrote.
“By stabbing her MANY times, as well as beating her in the face and head while it was clear that she fought for her life,” the mother wrote, before asking her readers: “What would you want? Justice or vengeance?”
Image credits: kayleegoncalves
Her post was in part a response to criticism both her and her husband Steve faced from netizens who accused them of prioritizing revenge over due process.
For Kristi and her family, however, they are simply demanding accountability equal to the horror of the crime.
Image credits: kayleegoncalves
Specifically, the Goncalves family had called for the penalty by firing squad—not out of a desire for swift execution, but because they believed the psychological torment of being placed on row would weigh heavier on Kohberger than the relative comfort of a life sentence in the general prison population.
The culprit wasn’t a typical criminal, but an expert undergoing a criminal justice doctorate program
Image credits: KTVB
According to prosecutor Bill Thompson, Kohberger’s actions were far from impulsive. The culprit surprised investigators with his level of planning and preparation.
“The defendant has studied crime,” Thompson told the court. “In fact, he did a detailed paper on crime scene processing when he was working on his PhD.”
Image credits: kayleegoncalves
Months before the murders, Kohberger’s cell phone had pinged near the King Road residence in Moscow, Idaho, 23 separate times between 10 pm and 4 am—showing he had been surveilling the victims.
At the time, Kohberger had begun a criminal justice doctorate program at nearby Washington State University, located just across the state line.
Image credits: kayleegoncalves
On the night of the killings, surveillance footage captured his white Hyundai Elantra circling the neighborhood multiple times before pulling behind the students’ house.
Prosecutors said he entered through the sliding glass door shortly after 4 am, then made his way upstairs where Kaylee Goncalves and her best friend Madison Mogen were asleep.
Inside the room, he took the lives of both women. A knife sheath, left behind next to Mogen’s body, bore DNA that would later link him to the crime.
Kohberger was sentenced to four consecutive life sentences, a decision the Goncalves family disagreed with
Image credits: KCAL News
As Kohberger attempted to make his escape, he encountered roommate Xana Kernodle in a hallway, along with her boyfriend Ethan Chapin. An altercation ensued, which ended with both students losing their lives.
Two other roommates, Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, survived the massacre—one of whom described seeing a masked intruder walk past her and out of the house.
Kohberger’s car was later found disassembled internally, and his apartment had been scrubbed clean.
Image credits: Ada County Sheriff
Authorities only zeroed in on Kohberger thanks to a combination of surveillance footage, cellphone tower data, and a Q-tip retrieved from his family’s trash, which provided a DNA match with the knife found at the crime scene.
Image credits: COURT TV
Bryan Kohberger will be formally sentenced on July 23 in Boise, Idaho. He will have the opportunity to speak, but is not obligated to do so. If he remains silent, the true reason behind the murders may never be known.
For the Goncalves family, what remains is the sense of loss and true justice not being served, despite Kohberger serving four consecutive life sentences.
“The state is showing BK mercy by removing the penalty. BK did not show Kaylee ANY mercy,” the mother said.
“My heart hurts.” Netizens empathized with the family’s anger
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