Former sorority sister of Idaho victim says campus was a terrifying place in the weeks after murders
A former sorority sister to of the four students who was killed last November has told how the campus of the University of Idaho was a terrifying place to be in the weeks following the murders before any suspects were caught.
Natalia Zieroth-Chaumont, a member of the Alpha Phi sorority, who was a sister to Kaylee Goncalves, is speaking out six months after the horrifying incidents took place which saw the killing of four students in their beds at a home close to campus.
Zieroth-Chaumont knew Goncalves well having been in the same sorority. In order to cope with the devastating murders she learned to set aside her personal feelings.
As a senior and a residential advisor in a freshman dorm, she felt she had to try and convey a sense of calm and help other first-year students through the shock of the entire episode.
Despite an increased security presence on campus for the remainder of this school year, she said she came to the realization that danger can lurk anywhere.
‘Even super safe places still have their dangers. It definitely opened people’s eyes to real life,’ Zieroth-Chaumont told the Idaho Press.
Natalia Zieroth-Chaumont, a member of the Alpha Phi sorority, who was a sister to Kaylee Goncalves, is speaking out six months after the murders took place
Maddie Mogen (top) Kaylee Goncalves (second from left) Xana Kernodle (second from right) and Ethan Chapin (center) – all students at the University of Idaho – were stabbed to death on November 13 in the quiet, college town of Moscow, Idaho
Both Kaylee Goncalves, who was murdered and Natalia Zieroth-Chaumont were sisters of the Alpha Phi sorority
Pictured: (L-R) Dylan Mortenson, Xana Kernodle, Bethany Funke, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen
The university where Kohberger worked was only eight miles from the murder scene
Many students, including Zieroth-Chaumont, had to face the difficult decision of whether to return to campus, with some choosing not to come back after the Thanksgiving break.
‘There were a lot of girls that didn’t come back after Thanksgiving,’ Zieroth-Chaumont said.
Such a choice was unavailable to her because her role as a residential adviser prevented her from being able to attend classes remotely.
One student compared the murders to Covid making a resurgence in how if affected life on campus.
‘I like to say that we’ve really had two COVIDs, in a way,’ said Matty Murphy.
Other students on campus say the mood changed significantly following the suspect’s arrest some 47 days after killings and 12 days before classes started for hte spring semester.
‘Classes started off in a much better position. There is no doubt that the arrest greatly helped reassure people,’ Idaho student Paul Gillespie said.
Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, and Madison Mogen were all murdered in the home they rented in during the early morning hours of November 13, 2022.
Police were alerted when a 911 call came through reporting an unconscious person and the discovery of the lifeless bodies of the four students on the second and third floors of the home.
All the victims had been stabbed multiple times with some showing signs of having fought back against their attacker.
Two other roommates who were present and living in the home at the time survived the attack.
Zieroth-Chaumont said the incident opened people’s eyes to the realities of life
Zieroth-Chaumont said many students had to face the difficult decision of whether to return to campus, with some choosing not to come back after the Thanksgiving break
Slain University of Idaho student Kaylee Goncalves is shown with members of her Alpha Phi sorority in a tribute video posted by the group
Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, Madison Mogen, 21,and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were found dead at their student apartment in the shadow of the University campus
Kohberger’s apartment was searched hours after he was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania on December 30
Kohberger’s apartment in Pullman, Washington, was combed by police for evidence into the ongoing investigation – pictured in January of this year
In late December 2022, Bryan Kohberger, a criminology student from nearby Washington State University, was arrested and charged with felony burglary and four counts of first-degree murder for the violent stabbings.
Kohberger, 29, allegedly remained on campus in the weeks following the murders before driving across the country to Pennsylvania with his father.
A preliminary hearing in Latah County court is scheduled for June which will determine if the case will proceed to trial.
University of Idaho is planning to honor the murdered students posthumously at this week’s graduation ceremonies.