Idaho cops still have no suspects in quadruple-slaying of students trends now
Police in Idaho say they still have no viable suspects in the massacre of four University of Idaho students in their home last month, while the two roommates who survived the attack have spoken out in gut-wrenching statements.
Killed in the November 13 stabbing attack in their off-campus home were: Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Maddie Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20 and Ethan Chapin, 20.
In a statement on Saturday, the Moscow Police Department said it had received thousands of tips, but that 'at this time, no suspect has been identified.'
Local cops and Moscow Police Chief James Fry have faced sharp criticism in recent days, including from the families of the victims, over the lack of apparent progress in the case.
In the new statement, the department said that 'only vetted information that does not hinder the investigation will be released to the public.'
'There is speculation, without factual backing, stoking community fears and spreading false information,' the statement added.
Survivors Dylan Mortensen (left) and Bethany Funke (right) have broken their silence on Friday in heartbreaking statements after the murder of their four friends: Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen (on Kaylee's shoulders), Ethan Chapin, and Xana Kernodle
Moscow Police Chief James Fry is seen. Police in Idaho say they still have no viable suspects in the massacre of four University of Idaho students in their home last month
The department said it has received 2,645 email tips and more than 2,770 calls to the tip hotline, as well as 1,084 digital media submissions to the FBI.
Investigators are poring over 113 pieces of physical evidence and about 4,000 crime scene photographs, the department said.
Meanwhile, survivors Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke, who were asleep on the first floor of the home as the killings unfolded on the upper floors, broke their silence in heartbreaking statements, which were read aloud by a pastor at Real Life Ministries on Friday.
Mortensen wrote touching tributes to her friends, saying that Kernodle and Chapin, who were a couple, were 'the two best friends but perfect pair together.'
'They had this unstoppable, loving relationship. They both would look at each other with so much love. Everyone knew they were the perfect duo,' she wrote.
'They both had this fun, passionate, crazy but good energy. They both were the kind of people who cared about everyone and would help anyone.'
She went on to describe Mogen and Goncalves as 'an inseparable duo' who were 'like second moms to me.'
In her own statement, Funke said she wished she could give each of her roommates 'one last hug' and tell them how much she 'loved them.'
'You always told me that everything happens for a reason, but I'm having a really hard time trying to understand the reason for this,' Funke wrote, addressing her slain roommate Mogen.
The Moscow Police Department has not yet named a suspect or made any arrests.
Investigators have also not yet found a weapon, the department wrote in a news release Wednesday.
Autopsies determined the four students were stabbed to death, likely
