Idaho house demolition will be ‘very emotional’: Goncalves’ mom

(NewsNation) — The parents of University of Idaho victim Kaylee Goncalves have fought to hold off the demolition of the home where she was killed.

The physical house will no longer be destroyed this semester, the university said. However, the intention to eventually demolish it remains.

Goncalves’ mother, Kristi, told NewsNation senior national correspondent Brian Entin on Friday that her desire for the university to hold off on demolishing the house was strictly for the prosecution’s benefit, saying it’ll be “good for the case.” However, she said it’s still going to be “very emotional” for her when it’s demolished.

“We have pictures of them in the house. When that house goes, it’s gonna be hard. I don’t want to go in. I’ve never even been to the house. I’ve never drove by it. I don’t want to,” she told Entin.

Bryan Kohberger is facing charges in the deaths of four University of Idaho college students: Kaylee, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. The four students were found dead almost one year ago in an off-campus house in a stabbing that shocked the small town of Moscow, Idaho.

It took more than a month for investigators to arrest Kohberger, a graduate student in criminology at Washington State University, located just a few miles from Moscow.

Investigators identified Kohberger using genetic genealogy, a process that takes DNA evidence and compares it to genetic information from family members that may be found on genealogy sites such as Ancestry.com or 23andMe. Investigators use DNA to identify possible family connections, which, combined with other evidence such as the white Hyundai Elantra seen near the scene, can help identify a suspect.

Kohberger was arrested at his family’s home in Pennsylvania before being brought back to Idaho, where he has remained in jail.

He is facing four charges of first-degree murder and one charge of burglary. If convicted, he could face the death penalty.