(NewsNation) — Idaho investigators revealed Wednesday that they don’t know who Bryan Kohberger was targeting when he killed four college students in 2022.
“We don’t know who the target was, and we’re not going to speculate on that up here today, but we can tell you that for whatever reason Mr. Kohberger chose that residence,” lead investigators on the case said when asked why they initially called the attack “targeted.”
No connection between Bryan Kohberger and ‘Pappa Rodger’: police
The investigators also said there was no connection between Kohberger and an account under the username “Pappa Rodger” that commented in a Facebook group dedicated to the discussion of the Idaho murders case.
That account was taken down around the time Kohberger was arrested, leading to speculation that the account could have been linked to him.
Bryan Kohberger appears at the Ada County Courthouse, for his sentencing hearing, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (AP Photo/Kyle Green, Pool) 
Benjamin Mogen, father of Madison Mogen cries at the sentencing hearing of Bryan Kohberger at the Ada County Courthouse, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (AP Photo/Kyle Green, Pool) 
Dylan Mortensen gets a hug after speaking at the sentencing hearing of Bryan Kohberger at the Ada County Courthouse, for his sentencing hearing, Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho, for brutally stabbing four University of Idaho students to death nearly three years ago. (AP Photo/Kyle Green, Pool) 
Kohberger, a former graduate student in criminal justice at Washington State University, faces murder charges for the deaths of Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves and Ethan Chapin, who were killed at an off-campus house near the University of Idaho on Nov. 13, 2022. He had pleaded not guilty.
“There was no connection,” an investigator said. “We looked at every bit of it. We took a deep dive into it. We researched it.”
No connection between Kohberger and victims on social media: police
The lead investigators also said they did not find “a single connection” on social media between Kohberger and the victims. He was not following or engaging with any of the four, they added.
Investigators and prosecutors made their first statements since the gag order on the case was lifted by Judge Steven Hippler last week.
Kohberger was formally sentenced during a hearing Wednesday, where several victims’ family members made emotional impact statements.
He brutally murdered Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin in an off-campus Idaho home.
Kohberger took a plea deal, agreeing to serve four life sentences for the slayings. He confessed to killing them in court, avoiding a trial where prosecutors intended to seek the death penalty.