Before the horrifying murders that shook the University of Idaho community, there were eerie moments that, in hindsight, feel like chilling warnings.
Kaylee Goncalves’ dog, Murphy, seemed to sense something unusual — darting into the woods behind their home not once, but twice, in the weeks before the killings.
Dog Runs Off Twice, Leaves Friends Uneasy
One day in 2022, Kaylee and some friends were out on the patio at their off-campus house in Moscow, Idaho, when Murphy suddenly ran into the bushes.
He didn’t come back right away and had to be called back multiple times.
According to a woman who spoke with police, it struck everyone as odd because Murphy usually returned the moment he was called.
Halloween Party Brings Another Scare
Then, just two weeks before the murders, during a Halloween party, Murphy did the same thing — he dashed toward the trees and didn’t come back for a while.
That same woman said they also heard someone moving around in the woods.
They didn’t see anyone, but the unsettling noise and Murphy’s behavior prompted them to go inside and lock the door.
A Mysterious Open Door and a Missing Dog
Around this same time, the woman said she and Kaylee came home one day and found Murphy missing — and the sliding glass door was wide open.
While it wasn’t uncommon for friends to enter and exit the house freely when no one was home, the timing felt off.
The details came to light in newly released documents, shared by The Spokane Spokesman-Review, following the conclusion of Bryan Kohberger’s murder trial.
Could Kohberger Have Known the Dog?
Now that Bryan Kohberger, 30, has been sentenced to life without parole for killing Kaylee Goncalves, Maddie Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin, questions are resurfacing.
Could he have interacted with Murphy before the murders? That might explain how he managed to enter the house undetected — perhaps the dog already knew him.
Neighbor May Have Spotted Kohberger Months Earlier
The newly unsealed files also include testimony from a neighbor who told police she believed she saw Kohberger near her home in August or September 2022 — several months before the murders.
She said the man looked “nervous,” had curly hair, a large nose, and passed her house on foot.
She also recalled spotting a white car idling near her mailbox that summer for over an hour.
When a neighbor asked the driver — who matched Kohberger’s description — if he needed help, the man drove away.
Kaylee Mentioned a Man Watching Her
Even more chilling: Kaylee Goncalves had reportedly told her roommates that she once noticed a strange man staring at her while she took Murphy outside.
The roommates also returned home another time to find their front door ajar and loose on its hinges — enough to make them grab golf clubs in fear that someone might have broken in.
Just Days Before the Attack, the Door Was Open Again
On November 4, just nine days before the attack, the roommates came home at around 11 a.m. to another unsettling scene: the front door wide open, again loose on its hinges, swaying in the wind.
It’s unclear whether these strange incidents were connected to the murders, but investigators took every tip seriously in their push to find the killer.
DNA on Knife Sheath Breaks the Case
Eventually, police tracked down Kohberger, a criminology PhD student at Washington State University, using DNA left behind on a knife sheath at the scene.
Cellphone records helped trace his location the night of the murders.
They also discovered he had purchased a military-style knife and had driven past the victims’ house multiple times.
Police Interviewed Him After Arrest in Pennsylvania
Six weeks after the killings, Kohberger was arrested at his parents’ home in Pennsylvania.
During questioning by Idaho police, state troopers, and the FBI, he initially engaged in small talk — chatting about college, teaching assistant duties, and his interest in becoming a professor.
When asked directly if he knew what had happened in Moscow, Kohberger replied, “Of course.”
But when pressed further, he quickly said he needed a lawyer.
Though the officers ended the interview once he invoked his right to counsel, Kohberger continued to ask questions, including whether his parents and dog were okay.