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The family of Idaho murder victim Kaylee Goncalves is defending the surviving roommate who claims to have seen the ‘killer’ but did not call police.
Dylan Mortensen, who survived with her roommate, Bethany Funke, as their four friends were stabbed to death on November 13, did not call police but still gave police information about the suspect, attorney Shanon said. Gray. foxnews.
Gray, who represents the Goncalves family, said Mortensen was likely “scared to death” when she encountered the man and insisted that she was “still a victim in this case.”
“The fact that she was able to provide some additional identification, I think is beneficial in this case,” Gray said. ‘She was able to give, more or less, the type and the construction and what [the suspect] looked a bit: bushy eyebrows, the like.
The Goncalves are the latest to defend Mortensen after the roommate of a woman who suffered a brutal attack in 1992 said she, too, had a delayed response during a similar scenario.
Dylan Mortensen, was one of two roommates to survive the brutal Idaho murder case that claimed the lives of four of his friends. It is revealed that Mortensen saw the murder on the night of the crime but did not call the police.
Despite the disclosure, the family of victim Kaylee Goncalves (above) said Mortensen was likely “scared to death” that night and noted that she still spoke to police about what she saw.
Suspect Bryan Kohberger (pictured) faced the death penalty as he is accused of killing Goncalves, Madison Mogen, both 21, Xana Kernodle and her boyfriend Ethan Chapin, both 20, on November 13 at their home off campus.
Pictured: Kaylee’s father, Steve, who has spoken out about the case.
Goncalves, Madison Mogen, both 21, Xana Kernodle and her boyfriend Ethan Chapin, both 20, were stabbed to death while in bed at a home in Moscow, Idaho, with Mortensen and Funke the only survivors.
Suspect Bryan Kohberger, 28, faces the death penalty if convicted of the quadruple murders.
This week, a probable cause affidavit revealed that Mortensen had heard several fights on the night his roommates were killed and opened the door for him.
Mortensen told police he saw a suspect dressed entirely in black with a mask covering his face and heard one of his housemates say, “There’s someone here.”
Mortensen “said she opened the door a third time after hearing the crying and saw a figure dressed in black clothing and a mask covering the person’s mouth and nose walking towards her.”
He heard the suspect say, “Okay, I’m here to help you,” as the person crawled through the house committing the quadruple murders.
The affidavit adds: ‘DM described the figure as 5’10” or taller, masculine, not heavily muscled, but athletically built with bushy eyebrows.
Mortensen has not revealed why she did not call authorities sooner, but some argue that she may have been “frozen” with fear.
Alanna Zabel, 50, said she can relate to having a delayed response while reconstructing the horrific 1992 attack on her sorority.
(L-R) Dylan Mortensen, Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen (on Kaylee’s shoulders), Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Bethany Funke
Alanna Zabel, 50, found her college roommate near death in her blood-covered bedroom in 1992 and has defended the belated reaction of University of Idaho quadruple murder survivor Dylan Mortensen.
In the image: investigators removing one of the mattresses from the crime scene.
Zabel lived in a house with five sorority sisters off the University at Buffalo campus and said she can relate to the “anguish” Mortensen and Funke are feeling.
She said she, too, had a late response and felt guilty that she had gone to sleep despite hearing heavy, choked breathing in her roommates’ room, only calling the police the next day.
“Someone was stalking us and came in one night while we were partying and drinking late,” he said.
‘They brutally beat and raped my roommate. I found her six hours later and she almost died.
“I didn’t see any blood at first, even though the room was covered,” he said.
Zabel said that having been through a similar situation, living with the guilt of not calling 911 sooner, haunts her.
I have lived with the guilt of not calling 911 sooner my whole life. I never saw the attacker or any sign of the robbery until I found my roommate the next morning,” he said.
I can imagine the guilt this surviving roommate in Idaho must feel. I also called 911 reporting an unconscious person because he did not understand the extent of what was happening.
He went on to say that when you live in an environment, like college, where having strangers in your house becomes normal, it’s hard to ‘imagine’ a tragedy like this.
You don’t want to believe it’s true. Being so young I can imagine that she went into shock, it is a real defense mechanism to survive, ”she said.
Investigators have said they found Kohberger’s DNA at the crime scene.
Kohberger was arrested 2,532 miles from the crime scene
The blood-soaked bodies of Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle and Chapin were found by police just before noon after Mortensen and Funke, two housemates who survived the murders, woke up around 11 a.m. to find their dead friends.
The savage killings shocked Moscow, a small college town in Idaho with a population of just 26,000 that hadn’t seen a murder since 2015.
This week, police released an arrest affidavit revealing why they pointed the finger at Kohberger, 28, more than a month after the four students were murdered in their beds.
He was denied bail during a brief court appearance in Moscow on Thursday, shortly after the affidavit outlining part of the case against him was shared online.
The documents included details about how Kohberger’s DNA was found on a knife sheath near the bodies of Mogen and Goncalves.