Affidavit released Thursday shows man charged with four murders journeyed to valley, went shopping at Clarkston Albertsons.
The man accused of slaughtering four University of Idaho students was in Clarkston on the day of the murders, according to the affidavit released Thursday.
Bryan Kohberger’s cellphone data indicates he drove his white Hyundai Elantra to the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley on Nov. 13. Court documents say surveillance footage from the Clarkston Albertsons shows Kohberger exiting the vehicle at 12:49 p.m.
Interior surveillance cameras show the suspect walking through the store, purchasing unknown items at the checkout and leaving at approximately 1:04 p.m.
When contacted by the Lewiston Tribune on Thursday, an employee at the Clarkston grocery store said management is not commenting on the case or releasing the footage to the media at this time.
The white Elantra was also seen in the parking lot of the Chef’s Store at 820 Port Drive and passing by Kate’s Cup of Joe, which is on the same street. An employee at the coffee stand said the car was spotted in the drive-through, but the driver did not stop and order anything.
Detective Bryon Denny of the Clarkston Police Department said he was asked to obtain some surveillance footage by Idaho authorities. However, the FBI handled the Albertsons portion of the investigation.
“We were just called to check the video of the Chef’s Store parking lot,” Denny said. “It did not appear he entered the store.”
According to the affidavit, the cellular data indicates the suspect traveled from Pullman to Lewiston along U.S. Highway 195, several hours after the homicides occurred.
There is speculation Kohberger may have visited the valley to dispose of evidence in the Clearwater or Snake rivers and possibly purchase cleaning supplies, but that has not been confirmed. Investigators have said the weapon used in the murders hasn’t been located.
The time when Kohberger was allegedly in Clarkston is when police were starting their initial investigation of the murder scene at the King Road residence in Moscow. The initial 911 call to police was placed at about noon Nov. 13.
The phone allegedly tied to the suspect was reportedly turned off during the time the four students were stabbed to death. It did not ping again until approximately 4:48 a.m. on U.S. Highway 95, north of Genesee, which is “consistent with Kohberger attempting to conceal his location during the quadruple homicide that occurred at the King Road residence,” according to court documents.
It appears the suspect headed west toward Uniontown and back to his residence in Pullman. The data also reportedly shows the phone returning to the crime scene in Moscow and later connecting to the towers in Clarkston.
Sandaine can be reached at [email protected].