The chilling selfie taken by Bryan Kohberger, showing him giving a thumbs up hours after allegedly murdering four University of Idaho students, has been described as a sick “trophy” by the father of one of the victims. Steve Goncalves, whose daughter Kaylee Goncalves was among the victims, believes that Kohberger took the photo as a way to signify his belief that he had gotten away with the heinous crime.
In an interview on “Fox and Friends,” Goncalves expressed his interpretation of the selfie, stating, “I see somebody that was there making himself a trophy.” He added, “I know the timeline, I know that he … had just returned to the crime scene and came back.” The photo, taken at 10:30 a.m. on November 13, 2022, shows Kohberger standing in front of a shower with a half-smile and a thumbs-up gesture.
Investigators believe that the students were killed between 4 a.m. and 4:25 a.m. on the same day, and that Kohberger returned to the scene in Moscow, Idaho, around 9 a.m. after allegedly leaving his apartment in Pullman, Washington. The victims’ roommates discovered their friends dead in their beds around noon and called 911.
The prosecution is relying on interviews with the two surviving roommates, identified as DM and BF, to build their case against Kohberger. DM claimed to have seen a 6-foot-tall white masked man with bushy eyebrows leaving the house in the early hours of November 13. This description aligns with Kohberger’s distinguishable thick eyebrows seen in the selfie.
Latah County prosecutors have argued for the admissibility of the selfie as evidence, as it shows Kohberger’s face around the time of the murders. Kohberger’s attorneys, on the other hand, have requested the court to refrain from using certain phrases such as “bushy eyebrows,” “murderer,” and “murder weapon” in relation to their client.
The gruesome nature of the crime and the callous act of taking a selfie afterwards have shocked the community and drawn attention to the tragic loss of four young lives. As the legal proceedings continue, the families of the victims seek justice and closure for the senseless deaths of their loved ones.
