A retired Moscow police captain is saying the murders of four University of Idaho students that took place last month might have been motivated by revenge.
Retired Capt. Paul Kwaitkowski, 64, believes that the killer responsible for the deaths knew at least one of the victims and may have been seeking vengeance, based upon his 20 years of experience investigating local homicides, per an exclusive interview with the Daily Mail.
“When you use the word ‘targeted,’ it means somewhere along the line we met,” Kwaitkowski said. “Somewhere along the line, something bad happened, something that pi***d someone off enough to go after these people.”
A suspect has not yet been identified in the Nov. 13 homicides of Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, who were killed in bed and stabbed in the chest and upper body with a large knife between 3 and 4 a.m.
Officials in Moscow initially reported that they believed the deaths were the result of an “isolated, targeted attack” by someone who had “specifically looked at this residence.” However, police backtracked on these statements on Nov. 30, explaining they resulted from a “miscommunication” with the Latah County Prosecutor’s Office.
“Detectives do not currently know if the residence or any occupants were specifically targeted but continue to investigate,” city officials said in a statement on Nov. 30.
Investigators further clarified the next day, releasing a statement noting that “we remain consistent in our belief that this was a targeted attack, but investigators have not concluded if the target was the residence or if it was the occupants.”
Several former law enforcement officials and current forensic experts have been offering various theories relating to the case. Police have been offering limited information to the public and warned against speculation and unvetted information.
Several family members of the slain students, particularly Goncalves’s father, Steve, have spoken out in frustration at the lack of information provided.
Goncalves has spoken to various outlets on the nature of his daughter’s death. He told Fox News in an exclusive interview published Monday that he did not think his daughter’s wounds were consistent with the others.
He called the killer a “sadistic male” despite no identification of a suspect being released. He said the coroner, Cathy Mabbutt, gave him the details on his daughter’s fatal wounds.
“She says, ‘Sir, I don’t think stabs is the right word, it was like tears, like this was a strong weapon, not like a stab,'” he said.
“She said these were big open gouges. She said it was quick,” Goncalves continued. “These weren’t something where you were going to be able to call 911. They were not going to slowly bleed out.”
Police have not recovered a weapon either, which they believe to be a fixed-blade knife.
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Moscow police have acknowledged people’s frustrations and the large amount of speculation about the case, including the cause of death, victim injuries, and investigative techniques, among others.
“We recognize the frustration this causes and that speculation proliferates in the absence of facts,” police stated. “However, we firmly believe speculation and unvetted information is a disservice to the victims, their families, and our community.”
