Nearly four years after the brutal stabbing deaths of four University of Idaho students shocked the nation, newly unsealed court documents have revealed the gruesome specifics of the victims’ final moments. The records, obtained by PEOPLE and first reported in detail on January 26, 2026, draw from autopsy findings and prosecutorial filings. They provide a stark, unflinching look at the violence inflicted on Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin on the night of November 13, 2022. Collectively, the four were stabbed at least 150 times—each wound a testament to the ferocity of the attack and the terror they endured.

The documents emerged from a supplemental filing by prosecutors, intended to outline expert testimony in what was once anticipated to be a lengthy trial. But Bryan Kohberger, the 30-year-old criminology PhD student accused of the murders, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of first-degree murder as part of a last-minute deal to avoid the death penalty. He confessed to killing each victim individually, sparing the families a protracted courtroom ordeal but leaving many questions unanswered. Kohberger is now serving four consecutive life sentences without parole. The unsealed autopsy details, however, offer a window into the horror that unfolded in the off-campus house on King Road in Moscow, Idaho—a house that once buzzed with college life and now stands as a grim memorial.

Kaylee Goncalves, 21, and Madison Mogen, 21, were found together in Mogen’s third-floor bedroom. Goncalves, described by friends as outgoing and fiercely loyal, suffered at least 38 sharp-force injuries. The autopsy cataloged 24 stab and incised wounds to her scalp, face, and neck; 11 to her chest; and three to her upper extremities. Additional trauma included punctures on the outer table of her skull, injuries to her teeth and tongue, hemorrhages into her chest cavities, blunt-force lacerations on her scalp, bleeding around the brain, a nasal fracture, bruising around her eyes, patterned bruising on her lower face, and signs of asphyxial injury. The sheer number and distribution of wounds suggest she was attacked while likely asleep or just awakening—defenseless against the onslaught.

Madison Mogen, Kaylee’s best friend and roommate, endured at least 28 stab wounds. The report lists 13 stab incisions to her scalp, face, and neck; five to her chest; and 10 incised wounds to her upper extremities. She sustained perforations to her lung and liver, as well as damage to major blood vessels including the subclavian vein and artery. An incision to her nasal septum was also noted. Like Goncalves, Mogen was probably asleep when the attacker entered the room. The two friends, inseparable in life, died side by side in the same bed—their final moments shared in unimaginable terror.

On the second floor, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, met a different fate. Chapin, a loving and athletic young man who had recently celebrated his 20th birthday with Kernodle, suffered 17 stab wounds. The autopsy documented one stab to his upper chest; four stab and incised wounds to his scalp, face, and neck; six incised wounds to his upper extremities; and six stab and incised wounds to his lower extremities. He had perforations to his jugular vein, subclavian vein, and subclavian artery. Chapin was found in Kernodle’s bed, suggesting he was asleep or resting when the attack began.

Kernodle, however, fought back. The autopsy revealed 67 sharp-force injuries—the highest count among the victims—along with abrasions and contusions on her head, torso, and extremities that indicate a struggle. She sustained 23 stab and incised wounds to her scalp, face, and neck; seven to her chest; four to her abdomen; three incised and puncture wounds to her back; 25 incised wounds to her upper extremities; and five to her lower extremities. Additional findings included punctures on the outer table of her skull, perforation of her jugular vein, heart, lung, and pulmonary blood vessels, hemorrhages into chest cavities, wounds to the bones of her right hand (likely defensive injuries), scrapes and bruises across her face, torso, and extremities, and blood on the bottoms of her feet—evidence she moved around during the assault. Kernodle’s resistance may have been the reason Kohberger left behind a KA-BAR knife sheath on the bed next to Chapin; the sheath later yielded trace DNA that linked him to the scene.

The brutality of the attacks—particularly Kernodle’s defensive wounds—highlights the terror of those final minutes. The killer entered the house around 4 a.m., moving silently through the three-story residence. Surviving roommates Dylan Mortensen and Bethany Funke reported hearing noises but did not witness the attacks directly. Mortensen later described seeing a masked figure in black clothing leaving the home around 4:20 a.m. and locking eyes with him in a chilling moment. That eyewitness account, combined with cellphone data, surveillance footage of a white Hyundai Elantra near the house, and the DNA on the knife sheath, formed the backbone of the investigation that led to Kohberger’s arrest in December 2022.

Kohberger, a PhD student in criminology at Washington State University just across the border in Pullman, had no known prior connection to the victims. Prosecutors alleged he stalked the house multiple times before the murders, with cellphone pings placing him in the area repeatedly. The motive remains unclear—speculation ranged from obsession to random violence—but Kohberger’s guilty plea in July 2025 ended any chance of a public trial that might have explored those questions. By accepting the plea deal, he avoided the death penalty, a decision that drew mixed reactions from victims’ families. Some expressed relief at avoiding years of appeals; others felt justice was incomplete without a full reckoning.

The unsealed autopsy details have reopened wounds for the families. Kaylee Goncalves’ parents, Steve and Kristi, have been vocal advocates for transparency and justice. Madison Mogen’s family has spoken about the void left behind. Xana Kernodle’s parents, Ben and Karen, and Ethan Chapin’s family have focused on honoring their children’s memories through scholarships and awareness campaigns. The documents serve as a painful reminder of the physical toll: more than 150 stab wounds across four young lives, each incision a mark of unimaginable suffering.

The case has had a lasting impact on the University of Idaho community and the broader conversation about campus safety. Moscow, a small college town, grappled with fear in the weeks after the murders—students left town, security measures were heightened, and the house on King Road was eventually demolished. The tragedy sparked renewed scrutiny of online sleuthing, true-crime obsession, and the ethics of media coverage. It also highlighted the vulnerabilities of young adults living independently for the first time.

As Kohberger serves his life sentences in an Idaho prison, the unsealed records ensure the victims’ stories endure. Kaylee, Madison, Xana, and Ethan were not just names in headlines—they were vibrant young people with dreams, friendships, and futures stolen in the dead of night. Kaylee was planning a move to Texas; Madison loved her friends fiercely; Xana and Ethan were building a life together; Ethan was known for his kindness. Their final moments, now laid bare in medical detail, underscore the horror of what happened and the urgency of remembering them not for how they died, but for how they lived.

The release of these autopsy findings may bring some measure of closure for those seeking answers, but it also reopens the raw grief for families who must relive the unimaginable. In the end, the documents are more than legal exhibits—they are a somber chronicle of lives cut short, a reminder of the fragility of safety, and a call to honor the victims by ensuring such violence is never forgotten.