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What was Bryan Kohberger's motive? Internet shares wild theories about the alleged 'thrill kill'

A user came up with a theory that Kohberger wanted to see if he can 'use his criminology knowledge to get away with the crime'

This article is based on sources and MEAWW cannot verify this information independently.

MOSCOW, IDAHO: Bryan Christopher Kohberger, 28, who was arrested and charged with the brutal murders of four University of Idaho students on December 30, appeared in court for a brief hearing on Tuesday, January 3. He didn't contest his extradition to Idaho. Kohberger is maintaining his innocence but is not fighting the extradition, saying he is eager to fight the charges normally. Internet has been speculating what the motive behind the attack could be, alleging that it was a 'thrill kill'.

Ethan Chapin, 20, Xana Kernodle, 20, Madison Mogen, 21, and Kaylee Goncalves, 21, were stabbed to death on November 13 in their off-campus rental home on King Road. Kohberger was arrested at his parents' home in eastern Pennsylvania, more than 2,500 miles away from the town of Moscow. Kohberger is a PhD student in the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology at the neighboring Washington State University.

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A Twitter user while trying to understand the connection between Kohberger and the slain Idaho students, alleged that it was a 'thrill kill'. The user wrote, "I keep looking for a motive and/or connection between #BryanKohberger and the Idaho Four because it’s truly terrifying to imagine that this may have been nothing more than a thrill kill."

Another user agreed and replied, "Yeah….that’s what it seems like"

A user further added that it might be 'something someone said' that prompted Kohberger to commit the act. "The owner of a local bar said he was a real creep to women and would get angry if they turned down his advances or didn’t respond to questions like asking where they live. Wondering if something someone said set him off Scary regardless," the user wrote.

Whereas, another user alleged that motive could be his 'hatred towards women'. "I think the motive was just an obsession with murder, possibly hatred of women too, or they were easier to overpower. If he has no empathy or remorse, acting normal after isn't surprising. But, of course, everyone is entitled to a fair trial, including him, as it should be," wrote the user.

A user labelled Kohberger as a 'narcissist' and wrote, "He seems like a classic narcissist that killed for fun thinking he wouldn’t get caught. Or he wants to go down in the history books. A clear obsession with crime and the fact his dna was at the scene just makes it undoubtably in my mind."

Another user came up with a theory that Kohberger wanted to see if he can 'use his criminology knowledge to get away with the crime'. "Just had a thought. What if the motive is 1.) to see if he could use his criminology knowledge to get away with the crime and then 2.) to see - if arrested - if he could “criminal justice” his way out of conviction. Like that would all be very sick, but… ", wrote the user.

While there was one user who even questioned 'if someone else' apart from Kohberger is responsible for the killings, "Based on the lack of weapon, lack of motive and wrong Elantra, no way can prosecutors get a conviction. The dna (possibly not even blood) from a house filled with dna is weak. Was someone else responsible? ", wrote the user.

Another user added, "I really hope they have the right guy with #BryanKohberger . Im confused about motive. He kept his normal routine after the murders. He was not injured with cuts even though two of the victims had defensive wounds and we are told the killer used extreme force with a knife"

To this a user replied, "I think he has such an over control personality type that he was able to keep the normal routine. Motive was that one or multiple of the girls became an object of his rage due to years of not getting the type of girl he thought he deserved", alleging that the girls might have become 'an object of his rage'.

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