5 details about Dateline: The Terrible Night on King Road, the Bryan Kohberger case

Dateline (Image via Youtube/@Dateline NBC)
Dateline (Image via Youtube/@Dateline NBC)

On May 9, 2025, NBC's investigative documentary Dateline NBC debuted a compelling two-hour real crime program, and this unique episode revisits the horrific events of the 2022 killings of four University of Idaho students in Moscow, Idaho, and is entirely narrated by veteran correspondent Keith Morrison.

Bryan Kohberger, the suspect in the quadruple killing who is awaiting trial, is the main subject and Dateline: The Terrible Night on King Road offers no defense-leaning evidence and does not clear Bryan Kohberger and rather than this, it strengthens the prosecution's case by exposing fresh behavioral, digital, and visual connections between Kohberger and the location of the crime.


5 details about the Dateline episode of the Bryan Kohberger case

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Here are the top five details about the Bryan Kohberger case:

1) Victims and the crime scene

In a rental house on King Road, a few streets from the University of Idaho's main campus in Moscow, Idaho, the bodies of four students—Kaylee Goncalves (21), Madison Mogen (21), Xana Kernodle (20), and Ethan Chapin (20)—were discovered stabbed to death on November 13, 2022 and as per the facts, investigators eventually confirmed that all four victims were probably slain in their sleep between 4:00 and 4:25 a.m., describing the crime scene as chaotic and horrific.

A timeline of the events leading up to the deaths was reconstructed in the Dateline segment utilizing statements, police reports, and video evidence. It also highlighted that two surviving roommates were in the house during the incident but were unharmed, and it featured heartfelt tributes from the victims' families. The absence of forced entrance and the premeditated character of the killings presented the first difficulties for law enforcement.


2) Timeline and suspect identification

After weeks of widespread media coverage and public panic, Kohberger was named as a suspect over a month after the killings. At least four times between 3:29 and 4:20 a.m. on the night of the murders, police followed a white Hyundai Elantra that was shown on security film close to the crime scene and later, this car was linked to Kohberger, who was stopped in Indiana in December 2022 as he and his father were traveling cross-country in it.

Dateline claims that the digital breadcrumbs, which placed Kohberger close to the victims' home several times before the killings, let officials track him down in part through cell phone pings. His phone was notably off for a critical two-hour period during the incident, which raised suspicions for detectives. Analysts speculate that during the shootings, the suspect may have made a conscious effort to evade digital detection.


3) Eyewitness testimony

Shortly after the attacks, a masked man was reportedly spotted inside the house by one of the remaining roommates. She spoke of a tall, black-clad man with "bushy eyebrows" who was departing through a sliding door. This information was eventually verified through court papers, but it took weeks for it to be made public. Dateline reported on this disclosure, highlighting its psychological impact and importance for the jury.

The public has been confused because the eyewitness did not dial 911 until several hours later. Law authorities clarified, though, that the remaining roommates could not have known at first how serious the situation was. Dateline emphasized that the witness's credibility was unaffected by this delayed answer, placing it within the horror and shock of the situation.


4) Forensic evidence and DNA

The DNA match discovered on a KA-BAR knife sheath retrieved next to Madison Mogen's bed was the most compelling physical evidence revealed in the show. Investigators used familial genealogy databases and a direct sample taken from trash outside Kohberger's parents' Pennsylvania house to connect the male DNA sample found in the sheath to Kohberger.

The Dateline segment also disclosed that before the killings, Kohberger had looked via Amazon for battle gear and KA-BAR knives. Prosecutors contend that this premeditation creates a strong case, especially when combined with DNA and vehicle tracking. This DNA match, according to legal experts on the show, is probably the main thrust of the prosecution's case and will be challenging for the defense to dispute in court.


5) Kohberger's background and arrest

A 28-year-old criminology Ph.D. candidate, Bryan Kohberger, attended Washington State University in Pullman, which is only a 15-minute drive from Moscow. He graduated from DeSales University in Pennsylvania with a bachelor's and master's degree in criminal justice. His motivations and psychological makeup have come under close examination as a result of his scholarly concentration on criminal behavior.

It was disclosed on Dateline that before and following the killings, Kohberger had conducted internet searches for serial killers, including Ted Bundy. Months before the murders, he had also gone to a party where a woman later testified in an interview that he had made her feel uneasy with his text messages. After being taken into custody at his parents' Albrightsville, Pennsylvania, home on December 30, 2022, Kohberger was swiftly transported to Idaho.

Edited by Sohini Biswas