MOSCOW, Idaho — Prosecutors believe Bryan Kohberger’s defense team will argue at his murder trial that someone else could have planted evidence with his DNA in the home where four University of Idaho students were murdered in 2022.
Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson made the claim in a motion filed this week for the case.
Kohberger is charged in the murders of Mount Vernon native Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, and Kaylee Goncalves.
Police say Kohberger’s DNA was found on a fixed-blade knife’s sheath in the bed of one of the students.
“Instead of challenging the conclusion that the DNA on the knife sheath belonged to Defendant, the defense’s expert disclosures reveal that the defense plans to argue the DNA on the knife sheath does not prove Defendant was ever at the crime scene and the knife sheath itself could have been planted by the real perpetrator,” Thompson wrote in his motion.
A large portion of the court documents that detail both sides’ plans for witnesses have been sealed, so it isn’t possible to compare what Thompson claims to what the defense is planning.
Last month, a judge denied multiple motions by Kohberger’s defense team to toss out DNA evidence and digital records.
According to court documents, Kohberger’s defense argued that his rights were violated when DNA was taken from the crime scene and then analyzed using investigative genetic genealogy (IGG).
When asked to enter a plea last year, Kohberger stood silent, prompting a judge to enter a not-guilty plea on his behalf.
His trial is set to begin on August 11 and is expected to last for more than three months.
If he is found guilty, he could face the death penalty.
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