By Rebecca Boone -
The Associated Press
The four University of Idaho students found dead over the weekend in an off-campus home were the targets of a crime in which the killer, or killers, used a knife or "blade weapon," it said. this Tuesday the police.
Investigators are trying to establish a timeline for what the victims did on Saturday night and early Sunday morning, "following all leads and identifying persons of interest," the Moscow Police Department said in a statement. release.
The killings probably took place in the early hours of the morning and the bodies were found around noon, he said.
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The students were killed in what is considered
"
An isolated and targeted attack
, and there is no imminent threat to the community," according to police, who did not elaborate on why they believe the victims were the target of the attack.
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The autopsies, which are expected to be completed later this week, could provide more information about how the students were killed.
Police discovered their bodies on Sunday after responding to a call about a presumed unconscious person in a house a few steps from the university campus.
The victims were identified as Ethan Chapin, 20, originally from Conway, Washington;
Madison Mogen, 21, of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho;
Xana Kernodle, 20, from Avondale, Arizona;
and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, of Rathdrum, Idaho.
The university said Chapin was a freshman, Kernodle was a junior in marketing, Mogen was a senior and was also majoring in marketing.
Goncalves was a senior student and was studying general studies.
The university canceled classes Monday and said it would assign additional security personnel to escort students around campus for the rest of the week.
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The lack of information about the cause of the deaths and the fact that no arrests have yet been made by the police have led many students to leave campus days before Thanksgiving break begins.
The Wednesday night memorial vigil for the victims has been postponed until after the holiday, University of Idaho spokesman Kyle Pfannenstiel said in an email.
In a memo released Monday afternoon, University of Idaho President Scott Green urged center employees to be empathetic and flexible with students who decide to leave classes to spend time with their families.
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“Words cannot adequately describe the light these students brought to this world or alleviate the deep sorrow we feel at their death in these tragic circumstances,” Green wrote of the slain youths.
The police asked for the cooperation of the public to advance the case.
Moscow is a university city nestled in the hills of north-central Idaho, about 130 kilometers southeast of Spokane (Washington).