911 calls surge after University of Idaho killings
Police in the college town where the University of Idaho is located have been inundated with calls from a community still reeling from fears of a grisly quadruple murder that hasn’t been solved – as tired students head from their Thanksgiving break to the return to campus.
The Moscow Police Department has received 78 “extraordinary circumstances” calls since November 13 – the day after students Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, Ethan Chapin, 20, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were stabbed to death. and 36 welfare applicants died while sleeping in an off-campus home, the agency said Sunday.
For comparison, the police department had received 70 calls about unusual circumstances and only 18 requests for welfare in the entire month of October.
“We understand that there is a sense of fear in our community,” the police admitted.
Local, state and federal investigators working on the case are currently reviewing 488 “digital filings,” including photo and video tips submitted by members of the public to an FBI link.
Students are scheduled to return to the UI campus on Monday, but it remains unclear how many of them would resume in-person study in the final two weeks of classes before the winter break, CNN reported.
Fearing a killer on the loose, many students left campus early after the killings, and University of Idaho President C. Scott Green said last week some students had no plans to return to campus until police found them arrested.
It’s unclear how many students would resume in-person study in the final two weeks of classes before the winter break.
University of Idaho students return to campus after the Thanksgiving break on Sunday, November 27, 2022 in Moscow, Idaho.
University of Idaho students are returning to campus after their classmates were stabbed to death in their off-campus home two weeks ago.
“As such, faculty has been asked to prepare in-person and distance learning options to allow each student to choose their method of engagement for the final two weeks of the semester,” he wrote in a statement.
The University of Idaho is hosting a candlelight vigil Wednesday to honor murder victims.
Police previously said they believe the killings of the four students were “targeted” and “isolated” and they have not ruled out the possibility there were multiple attackers.
So far, no suspects have been named and the murder weapon – believed to be a fixed-blade knife – has not been found.
Kaylee Gonclaves’ father Steve Gonclaves told Fox News on Saturday that he has not received any updates on the investigation from law enforcement since Thanksgiving Day.
“They kind of just tell me there’s not much they can tell me, which is frustrating for me because I’ve been very trustworthy,” he said.
Idaho State Police Communications Director Aaron Snell said investigators were very tight-lipped to avoid spreading more fear and suspicion in a community already nervous and rumor-ridden.
Meanwhile, University of Idaho graduate student Kerry Uhlorn has raised more than $19,000 to buy and distribute Birdie personal alarms to students to help them feel safer on campus.
“It’s so scary, and I’m not even up there,” she told KTVB7. “I can’t imagine what it’s like for the people who live there.”
Senior Megan Lolley told the station she was looking forward to getting her alert so she could protect herself.
“It feels dangerous being up there now,” she said. “I was scared last week.”
https://nypost.com/2022/11/28/911-calls-surge-after-university-of-idaho-murders/ 911 calls surge after University of Idaho killings
