'Mark all the gas stations': Internet sleuths suggest ways to find white Hyundai Elantra in Idaho murders
This article is based on sources and MEAWW cannot verify this information independently.
MOSCOW, IDAHO: More than a month has passed after four University of Idaho students were stabbed to death in their beds. In the aftermath of the murders, investigators with the Moscow, Idaho, Police Department are reportedly sifting through at least 22,000 registered white Hyundai Elantras that appear to be similar to a vehicle seen on a video taken near the site where the students were killed.
In the early morning hours of November 13, Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, were stabbed to death in an off-campus three-story rented home. Law enforcement is yet to identify the suspect(s) in the case. Authorities have said that the gory scene where the students were killed was the “worst they’ve ever seen."
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'Mark all the gas stations'
Amid various theories and speculations surfacing on social media, the Internet has now come up with suggestions on ways to find the car. "So the police have said the person in the White Hyundai Elantra is a person of interest, I have found a possible solution for finding the driver of the vehicle without needing any video footage and by using gas station transactions from the night of the murders. I researched the max range of the 2011, 2012, and 2013 versions of the car and it seems that the range is about 410 miles. So let's cut that number in half to 205 miles of range, this all depends if the person of interest lives in that area. If they live outside of that range then they most likely would have had to stop at a gas station at some point. The car seems to have come from the EAST on highway 8 towards king road, so I would check the gas stations in the east first, but it's possible they drove that way to throw police off and took a different direction," a user wrote on Reddit.
"Create a circle of the area a 2011,2012,2013 Hyundai Elantra can travel from 1122 King Rd, Moscow, ID before it would need to get gas," they suggested, adding, "Mark all the gas stations in that circle that exist". "Grab all the credit card transactions from the time you want. I reviewed a few paths of travel and it seems like 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours of drive time before running out of gas for 205 mile range. We would probably want all the transactions from 3am - 9am to be safe and a larger radius," the user wrote.
"Take all those gas station credit card transactions of people who purchased gas. Run all the card holders names through the DMV database or FBI database. Find persons of interest who own a White Hyundai Elantra," they said. "Investigate those persons of interest."
The user concluded, "If the investigators don't find any persons of interest from doing this, it could mean a few things. Stolen car, borrowed car, rented car, person of interest lives close and didn't need to stop at a gas station. My theory is the person doesn't live as far as we think, stopping at a gas station is going to catch you and your car on camera the night of the murder and your credit card info. The good thing about credit card transactions is they stay on file for a long time, unlike video footage that is erased after a week or so usually. If the person driving that vehicle didn't stop at a gas station then there is your search radius for that car."
Other speculations
"If he/she was smart, they would have ditched the ELANTRA and had a second car within 50 miles ready to go, all fueled up, change of clothes…. The ELANTRA is probably stashed in some barn," one user wrote, while another said, "That’s my thought. Use the Elantra for as little time and as little mileage as possible. Having or getting access to a storage area (garage, barn, etc.) is another thing all by his lonesome is another thing."
"Even if didn’t stop @ gas station you’d think security camera may pick up! it is odd that owner hasn’t come forward. unless maybe he let someone borrow car & didn’t kno where car was driven. if i owned such vehicle- even if i knew had been locked in my garage for weeks- i’d at least come forward! you kno everyone in the state & surrounding states have to feel strange if own same description car!" one user said. Another wrote, "I like working with logic. What about where they filled up before the murders OR filling up gas cans prior to the murders? So, the same radius could be used prior to the estimated murder times."
The FBI reportedly recently added 30 extra agents to the case. It has also been revealed that the lead investigator in the case is reportedly 32-year-old US Army veteran Brett Payne, who joined the Moscow Police Department from the army in 2020, just two years ago.
This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.