Idaho cops now insist they do NOT know if quadruple murder victims were ... trends now
Law enforcement officials now say they are not sure if the stabbings of the four University of Idaho college students were 'targeted' in a major backflip in the case.
On Wednesday, the Moscow Police Department issued a press release saying that they are now unsure of the claim that the attack was intended for any of the occupants of the home.
'Detectives do not currently know if the residence or any occupants were specifically targeted but continue to investigate,' the Moscow Police Department said.
This announcement came as family and friends were gathering to honor and remember Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Maddie Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20, who were murdered on November 13 at their off-campus house.
No suspects have been publicly identified and the murder weapon has not been recovered.
Another shocking revelation came out of that event, as well, with Kaylee's father Steve Goncalves telling the crowd that his daughter died in the same bed as her best friend, Maddie. It had previously been reported the two girls were in separate bedrooms when they were murdered by the unknown assailant.
Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Maddie Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20 were found stabbed to death in an off-campus house on November 13
Friends and family gathered at a candlelight vigil Wednesday night to honor the four University of Idaho students killed in mid-November
Early Wednesday morning, Latah County prosecutor Bill Thompson told a local news station that 'investigators believe that this attack was intended for a specific person.'
Within hours, however, the Moscow Police Department posted to their social media accounts, making a 'clarification.'
'Conflicting information has been released over the past 24 hours. The Latah County Prosecutor's Office stated the suspect(s) specifically looked at this residence, and that one or more of the occupants were undoubtedly targeted,' the police department said in a post.
'We have spoken with the Latah County Prosecutor's Office and identified this was a miscommunication.
'Detectives do not currently know if the residence or any occupants were specifically targeted but continue to investigate,' the agency continued.
This wasn't the first time officials close to the case had said it was a 'targeted' attack, however.
In a social media post Friday, police clarified that they are unsure if the attack was targeted
The admittance comes after weeks of officials saying they believe the attack was targeted but not providing more information
Earlier this week, Moscow Police Chief James Fry told ABC News that police still 'believe this is a targeted attack,.'
'Everyone wants answers... We want to give those answers as soon as we can,' Fry said.
Police had initially said they believed there was 'no imminent threat to the community,' but later walked that back.
Fry told ABC News, 'I own the messaging problem at the very beginning. We should've done a little better than that. ... we needed to correct that.'
On November 23, Moscow Police Captain Roger Lanier said that investigators did in fact believe the group killed was targeted.
Just days previously, one top law enforcement official admitted they have said the attack was believed to be targeted
'We've told the public very clearly from the beginning that we believe it was a targeted attack,' Lanier said at the time.
'To be honest, you're going to have to trust us on that at this point, because we're not going to release why we think that.'
Additionally, Idaho State Police communications director Aaron Snell had previously stated as well that they believed the attack was targeted.
'There were survivors of this. And then as well, based on the evidence internally at the scene, that has led detectives to believe and continue to believe that this was a targeted event,' Snell told Fox News Digital on Nov. 26.
During a recent press conference, Police Chief James Fry owned that there was a 'messaging problem' between the department and the public
Within hours of the Moscow Police Department issuing the 'clarification' on Wednesday, loved ones and community members gathered on campus for the ceremony remembering the four students.
Among those in attendance, Steve Goncalves, who heartbreaking told the world his daughter died alongside her longtime best friend, Maddie, in the same bed.
The grieving father called the girls 'absolutely beautiful' and shared his gratefulness over the girls finding each other in sixth grade.
'And every day they did homework together, they came to our house together, they shared everything,' Steve said.
'Then they started looking at colleges, they came here together. They eventually get into the same apartment together. And in the end ... they died together in the same room, in the same bed.'
Steve Goncalves spoke about his daughter's death during a campus candlelight vigil Wednesday
Maddie and Kaylee, best friends since sixth grade, died in the same bed, according to Kaylee's father Steve
Before Steve Goncalves said Wednesday that his daughter Kaylee died in the same bed as Maddie, this is where it was believed the college students had died
Kaylee and Madison were found on the top floor of the Moscow, Idaho home. College lovers Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle were found in a second-floor bedroom while survivors Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke were sleeping on the first floor
This announcement came as a bit of a shock to many.
Before the Wednesday evening clarification from Kaylee's father, it was widely reported that the two girls had been in separate beds and bedrooms when they were brutally murdered.
Steve said during the vigil that in this dark time, he has found comfort in the knowledge that his daughter was with her best friend.
'But the beauty of the two always being together,' he continued, was that they were 'with their best friends in the whole world.'
'It's like a book, it's like some kind of terrible chapter but there's beauty in it. And we're gonna get our justice, we're gonna figure this stuff out. This community deserves that,' he said.
Police said they received a call about an 'unconscious person' just before noon that day, when a friend thought at least one of the victims had passed out and would not wake up
Ben Mogen, Maddie's father, also spoke at the ceremony about he and his wife Karen's only daughter.
The father described his daughter as 'smart and funny and beautiful. She was just nice to everybody.'
Stacy Chapin, Ethan's mom, said they are focused on sharing 'Ethan's legacy.'
'We are eternally grateful that we spent so much time with him. And I want to remind you, that that's the most important message that we have for you and your families, is to make sure that you spend as much time as possible with those people because time is precious, and it's something you can't get back,' she said.
Hundreds attended the celebration of life for the four students killed by an unknown assailant
As of November 30 - 17 days out from when the students were murdered - no suspects have
