The house at 1122 King Road doesn't exist anymore. It was torn down in late 2023, turned into a memory and a gravel lot, but the details of the Idaho 4 murders crime scene remain frozen in court documents and police affidavits. It's a heavy subject. Honestly, it’s one of those cases where the more you look at the forensic layout, the more confusing it initially seems until you see how the pieces start clicking together. You've probably seen the 3D renders or the grainy photos of the sliding glass door. But the reality of what investigators found inside that Moscow, Idaho, home is far more clinical and, frankly, more chilling than the social media rumors suggest.
People talk about "chaos." They imagine a scene that was totally out of control. In reality, the crime scene was a mix of targeted violence and weirdly specific physical evidence that eventually led police straight to a white Hyundai Elantra and a PhD student named Bryan Kohberger.
The layout of 1122 King Road and why it mattered
The house was a "tri-level" structure. This is a huge detail people miss. Because of the way it was built into a hill, the front door actually opened onto the first floor, but the sliding glass door in the back—the one everyone thinks was the main entry point—was on the second floor. It was a party house. It was a high-traffic environment. This made the Idaho 4 murders crime scene a nightmare for DNA specialists. Imagine trying to find a single suspect's skin cells in a house that had seen dozens, maybe hundreds, of college kids passing through in the weeks prior.
The victims were spread across the second and third floors. On the second floor, we had Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle. On the third floor, Kaylee Goncalves and Madison Mogen.
Police found the bodies of Mogen and Goncalves in the same bed. That’s a specific detail from the Latah County Coroner, Cathy Mabbutt. She noted that the victims were likely asleep or at least in bed when the attacks started. It wasn't a running fight through the halls. It was fast. It was quiet enough that two other roommates in the house survived without realizing what was happening until the next morning.
The "magic" piece of evidence: The Ka-Bar sheath
If you’re looking for the "smoking gun" of the Idaho 4 murders crime scene, it’s the tan leather knife sheath. It was found on the bed, right next to Madison Mogen’s right side. This is documented in the probable cause affidavit written by Corporal Brett Payne.
Think about that for a second.
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The killer left the sheath behind. It’s a massive mistake. On the snap of that sheath, investigators found a single source of male DNA. They didn't have a match for it initially. They had to go through investigative genetic genealogy—basically using public databases like Ancestry or 23andMe—to build a family tree that led them to the Kohberger family in Pennsylvania. Eventually, they pulled DNA from the trash at the Kohberger family home and matched the father's DNA to the son's profile on the sheath.
The sheath is the anchor of the whole case. Without it, the car sightings and the phone pings are just circumstantial. With it? It's a direct physical link.
Blood, footprints, and the "Void"
There’s been a lot of talk about the "latent shoe print" found at the Idaho 4 murders crime scene. It wasn't visible to the naked eye. Investigators used a chemical called amido black, which reacts with proteins in blood to reveal footprints that have been wiped away or are too faint to see.
The print was a "Vans" style sole.
It was found outside the door of Dylan Mortensen, one of the surviving roommates. She told police she opened her door and saw a figure in black clothes and a mask walking past her toward the back sliding glass door. She described him as having "bushy eyebrows." The footprint matched the path she said he took. It’s a grim detail because it suggests the killer walked right past a witness, inches away, while leaving the house.
Why didn't he see her? Was he in a trance-like state? Was it just too dark? We don't know. But the blood evidence was everywhere else. It was reportedly "oozing" through the exterior walls of the house, a detail that went viral early on and was sadly confirmed by photos of the foundation.
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Misconceptions about the 911 call
One thing that drives people crazy about the Idaho 4 murders crime scene is the delay. The murders happened between 4:00 AM and 4:25 AM. The 911 call wasn't made until nearly noon.
People think this "contaminated" the scene.
Technically, any time people walk through a crime scene before police arrive, it’s contaminated. Friends were called over before the 911 call was made because the surviving roommates thought one of the victims was just unconscious and wouldn't wake up. It sounds strange, but in a college house where people pass out after parties, it’s a plausible, if tragic, mistake. However, the forensic team—led by the Idaho State Police—spent weeks in that house. They took thousands of photos. They used Matterport cameras to create a virtual 3D map of every blood spatter and every piece of furniture.
The digital footprint vs. the physical scene
While the Idaho 4 murders crime scene gave us the DNA and the footprint, the "digital" crime scene gave us the motive and the timeline.
- Phone Pings: Kohberger’s phone pinged near the house at least 12 times in the months leading up to the murders.
- The "Silent" Period: On the night of the murders, his phone was turned off (or in airplane mode) from 2:47 AM to 4:48 AM. That's a huge "blackout" window that perfectly overlaps with the time of the killings.
- The Car: A white Hyundai Elantra was caught on various neighborhood cameras (including those from local businesses and private Nest cams) circling the "King Road neighborhood" four times before finally stopping at 4:04 AM.
It’s the combination of the physical evidence—the knife sheath—and the digital trail that makes this case so heavy for the defense.
Why the house was demolished
There was a lot of pushback when the university decided to tear down 1122 King Road. Proponents of keeping it argued that the jury should be able to walk through the Idaho 4 murders crime scene. They wanted the "vibe" of the house to be felt—the tight hallways, the steep stairs, the acoustics.
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The prosecution, however, argued that the 3D scans were more than enough. They felt a jury walk-through would be more emotional than factual. Honestly, crime scenes change over time. Smells fade, floorboards creak differently, and the lighting might not be the same. By demolishing it, the university hoped to stop the "true crime tourism" that was haunting the neighborhood.
What happens next for the evidence?
The trial has been moved to Boise (Ada County) to ensure a fair jury. The defense, led by Anne Taylor, is currently challenging the DNA evidence. They want to know exactly how the FBI used that genetic genealogy. They're looking for any crack in the chain of custody from the Idaho 4 murders crime scene to the lab.
If you're following this, you need to watch the "discovery" process. That’s where the real meat of the evidence comes out. We still haven't seen the actual photos of the interior. We haven't seen the full autopsy reports.
Actionable steps for following the case
If you want to stay informed about the forensic reality of this case without getting lost in the "TikTok detective" rumors, stick to these sources:
- Check the Latah County Court Portal: They post every single motion and order. It is the only way to see what is legally fact vs. what is internet speculation.
- Ignore "Anonymous Sources": In a case with a gag order this strict, anyone claiming to have "inside info" from a cousin of a cop is likely making it up.
- Focus on the "Daubert Hearings": These are the court dates where the judge decides which expert witnesses and forensic techniques (like the DNA modeling) are actually scientifically sound enough to be shown to a jury.
- Understand the "Pristine" DNA Argument: The defense is arguing that the DNA on the sheath could have been planted or transferred. This is a common tactic. Pay attention to how the prosecution proves the "chain of custody"—the log of every person who touched that sheath from the moment it was found.
The Idaho 4 murders crime scene was a tragedy that changed Moscow forever. It’s a landmark case for how DNA and digital surveillance can track a suspect, but it's also a sobering reminder of how much physical evidence can be left behind in a matter of twenty minutes. Keep an eye on the Boise trial dates; that's when the "silent" evidence will finally speak.