House where four University of Idaho students were killed will be demolished

The off-campus residence where four University of Idaho students were found dead in November will be demolished, the school said Friday.

The owner of the three-story King Street House where the bodies of Xana Kernodle, Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves were found was offered to the university.

The offer was accepted by the university. The school decided to get rid of the structure, which is located blocks away from campus, University President Scott Green said in a statement.

The slayings rocked the small community of Moscow, where investigators grappled with what the town’s police chief would later describe as a “very complex” case.

“This is a healing step and removes the physical structure where the crime that shook our community was committed,” Green said. “Demolition also removes efforts to further sensationalize the crime scene.”

The university is also “evaluating options where students may be involved in the future development of the property.”

Scholarships in honor of three of the students have been established and a fourth is in the works, Green said. A plan to create a memorial is also being developed.

“We will never forget Xana, Ethan, Madison and Kaylee, and I will do everything in my power to protect their dignity and respect their memory,” Green said.

Three of the victims were roommates in the house, and Kernodle’s boyfriend, Chapin, was staying overnight, according to investigators.

Bryan Christopher Kohberger, 28, was arrested late last year in Pennsylvania and has been charged with four counts of first-degree murder and burglary.

The four charges of first-degree murder carry sentences that could include life in prison to the death penalty.

He is scheduled for a five-day preliminary hearing starting June 26.

At the time of the slayings, Kohberger was a doctoral student, studying criminal justice and criminology at Washington State University in Pullman, a short drive over the state line from Moscow. A WSU official has said Kohberger is no longer enrolled.

Mirna Alsharif

Mirna Alsharif is a breaking news reporter for NBC News.

Erick Mendoza contributed.