Idaho Stabbings: Vol 2 Extended Facts

December 12th, 2022

Other Interesting Bits:

Pam and Jim Colbert’s dog was killed and skinned just three miles away from the site of the killings.

Buddy, a 12 year old mini Australian shepherd, was killed and skinned after being let out Oct. 21, according to the Daily Mail.

“It was like a deer that someone had hunted,” Pam, 78, said. “They cut him around the neck and just skinned him. His little legs had fur and his little face had fur, but the rest of him was just skinned,” she said. “The other side of him was as though they had filleted him like they were about to eat him. It was terrible, unbelievable, they cut him like you filet a fish. We found his collar, but we didn’t find the pelt.”

Her neighbor, Clint Hughes, has a fluffy Bernese Mountain Dog named Max, who ripped up his bed the same day Colbert's dog was found dead near both of their properties in an area of overgrown grass near a shed. "You could tell it just wasn't an animal that did it," Clint explained, adding that "it was obviously done with a knife."

Moscow Police determined this to be wildlife activity unrelated to the murders.

"Detectives are aware of a Latah County Sheriff’s Office incident of the report of a skinned dog and have determined it is unrelated to this incident," the Moscow Police Department said.

Detectives also said there were reports of dead animals being left on a resident’s property, and this was also wildlife activity unrelated to the murders.

Additionally, the idea that the homicide was connected to other unsolved stabbings in the states of Idaho, Washington, and Oregon was dismissed by police.

“We don’t believe at this point in time that … these murders are actually linked to two other knife murders that have occurred both in Pullman [Washington], as well as Oregon,” Idaho State Police Public Information Officer Aaron Snell said.

“There have been numerous media inquiries about a 1999 double stabbing in Pullman, Washington, and the 2021 double stabbing (with one death) in Salem, Oregon,” Moscow police said in a press release. “While these cases share similarities with the King Street homicides, there does not appear to be any evidence to support the cases are related.”

When asked to confirm whether or not the front door to the home was left wide open, police said they had “no idea about that.”

Moscow Building Supply general manager Scott Jutte told the Idaho Statesman that a police officer came into the retail establishment more than once this week to ask about sales of a KA-BAR brand combat blade.

"They were specifically asking whether or not we carry KA-BAR-style knives, which we do not," Jutte said. "If we did, we could've reviewed surveillance footage. But it wasn't something I could help them with."

Moscow Police Chief James Fry condemned the high volume of speculation and rumor surrounding the case, claiming that police have the sole authority to discuss the facts of the case, and threatened to arrest people for harassment amidst the spread of misinformation. 

“We want people to pay attention to what we're putting out there because that is accurate information, and anything that comes from other sources is either rumor or speculation,” Fry said. 

Following his statement, the police department said: “Anyone engaging in threats or harassment whether in person, online or otherwise needs to understand that they could be subjecting themselves to criminal charges. Moscow Police Department cautions the public not to rely on rumors and remains committed to keeping the public informed. We urge reliance on official channels for accurate information.”

Meanwhile, tensions are growing between investigators and the families of the victims, who have spoken their frustration about the failure to develop any quality leads.

Kaylee's father Steven told NewsNation's Brian Entin that police had told him her injuries were worse than the other victims', but he did not go into detail. Moscow police seemed to refute this, telling news outlets in a statement that they have provided no updated details to anyone including family members of the victims.

According to Fox News, Retired FBI profiler Mary Ellen O'Toole said there's a 50% chance the killer could attend the victims' funerals because of the brazenness of the attack. O'Toole famously got a confession out of "Green River Killer" Gary Ridgway and is considered the FBI's leading expert on psychopathic criminals. "Sometimes offenders show up," said Mary Ellen O'Toole, who once worked in the bureau's prestigious behavioral analysis unit. 

"They may take a lot of pleasure in thinking that they got away with the crime, and so going to a service like this where they can walk around and people don't realize who they are, that can certainly feed into that kind of egotistical response," she said. "There’s an arrogance about this crime, there’s a high-risk nature," noting that the home was occupied by six people, she added "there was every conceivable possibility he would have had his ass kicked."

Investigators would most certainly be videotaping these events, said O'Toole.

A law enforcement source told Fox News that authorities monitored the on campus vigil closely, taking photographs in a desperate attempt to catch the killer,

Goncalves' father told ABC News that the family was deeply concerned that the perpetrator would show up if they held a service.

"My wife's biggest fear, part of the reason we didn't have a funeral, is because she couldn't be guaranteed that that monster was going to not be there," Steve Goncalves said.

Idaho Gov. Brad Little has directed up to $1 million in state emergency funds for the ongoing investigation, police said.