TRANSCRIPTION OF PRESS CONFERENCE (PENNSYLVANIA POLICE)
3RD DECEMBER.
Colonel - While I monitored the investigation into the horrific murders of the University of Idaho students, I did not imagine the investigation would lead to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. My heart goes out to the families of the victims, their friends, the community of Moscow and the University of Idaho. No words can heal the pain associated with the loss of a child. Their young lives were ended far too soon. In law enforcement, we understand the best thing we can do for victims and their families is to follow every lead, collect every piece of evidence and bring those responsible to justice. I'm proud that the members of the Pennsylvania State Police were able to help in this investigation. The cooperative relationship between our local, state and federal partners stands the test of time. The officers, troopers and federal agents worked together tirelessly, putting in long difficult hours. Communication and cooperation are imperative to success and to ensure the integrity of the case remains maintained. The culmination of that cooperation, ultimately led to take the suspect into custody and afforded the families some sense of peace they deserve. I want to thank the Moscow Police Department, the Idaho State Police and our partners in the Federal Bureau of Investigation, for their support, assistance and coordination. I also want to recognise the Monroe County District Attorney's Office. And finally, I need to acknowledge the members of the Pennsylvania State Police, specifically members of troop N, our Bureau of Criminal Investigation and our Bureau of Emergency and Special Operations, who assisted in safely taking the suspect into custody in the early morning hours of December 30th. As previously indicated by Chief James Fry of the Moscow Police Department, specific details regarding this investigation cannot be released until the suspect is extradited to Idaho and presented with the probable cause affidavit. At this time, I will turn the microphone over to Major Christopher Paris, Commander of Area 3, who was involved in the coordinated efforts to take the suspect into custody.
Major - Thank you, Colonel. Area 3 comprises troops FPN and R and is made up of 1000, approximately, of the women and men, civilian and listed, in the North Eastern part of Pennsylvania. I'd like to introduce to my left Captain Norm Kramer, who is the Commander of Troop N, Hazleton, which is comprised of Carbon, Monroe, Colombia and parts of Lucerne counties. I would like to reiterate, as the Colonel said, that Idaho law prohibits any release of information contained within the affidavits. So we're going to do our best today to talk about what phase we are currently in in the investigation and it has entered a new phase with the waiver for extradition. And the continuing primary goal is the seeking of justice, through successful prosecution and conviction, bearing the burden of proof beyond reasonable doubt. So with that in mind, we're trying to balance essentially two things, the public's desire for information against the need to maintain the integrity of the investigation and protect the suspect's accused, at this point, due process.
So I will now attempt to give you an operational picture with the best information I can release at the time. So this begins when the Pennsylvania State Police Bureau of Criminal Investigation troopers were contacted by the FBI about assisting with surveillance of the accused in this case. I'd like to take the opportunity to specifically thank several individuals. Special Agent in charge, Jackie Maguire and Assistant Special Agent in charge, Dave Carter, from the Philadelphia Field Division, as well as supervisory special Agent Bill Vigorito of the Scranton RA. We are very lucky in PSP to have a collaborative relationship with the Bureau, both in Pennsylvania and beyond. And their people are absolutely excellent. So as the investigation progressed, Troop N Criminal Investigation section, commanded by Captain Kramer, over my left shoulder here, began to collaborate with authorities in Idaho. Specifically, I'd like to acknowledge Lieutenant James Kerdo who is here today. Sergeant Anthony Ferdinand, Corporal John Chulock, who is not present with us and troopers Leary and Noel who are here with us today. It was through this collaboration and the charges pending in Idaho that those troopers were able to obtain search warrants and a fugitive from justice warrant that was prepared here in Monroe County, for the location in Chestnut Hill Township and the fugitive from justice warrant for Mr. Kohberger, respectively. I'd like to acknowledge the Monroe County District Attorney, David Christine, as well as first assistant Mike Mancuso and their entire office. The support that we received was absolutely excellent. Once those warrants were obtained, The Bureau of Emergency and Special Operations BESO, coordinates our Special Emergency Response Team, SERT. They were selected to serve those warrants, the three search warrants and the fugitive from justice warrant. To define what SERT is - it's a full time tactical team maintained by PSP to deal with high risk warrant situations, barricades and other incidents requiring specialised tactical training or other capabilities. From their perspective, we essentially tasked them to go out and serve a arrest warrant for someone accused of a quadruple murder. They're activated several hundred times a year throughout the Commonwealth. We don't typically here of their work in a forum like this because they serve the warrant, the persons taken into custody and they go about their assignment. They are the ultimate professionals. It's a volunteer team. They are highly trained and highly motivated. Captain Norm Kramer, over my left shoulder, was assigned as the top com for the search activation, which means he was responsible for coordinating our tactical preparations. So tactical assets were then staged in Monroe County into the evening of Thursday, December 29th., last Thursday, and in the early hours of Friday, December 30th., those warrants were executed at the location. Mr. Kohberger was taken into custody without incident. The scene was turned over to the FBI evidence response team for processing. Mr. Kohberger was then turned over to the Monroe County prison, where he has remained in their custody since. I'd like to thank the Monroe County Sheriff and the Stroud Regional Police Department for their support as well during the extradition process. Arrangements currently are being made to deliver Kohberger back to Idaho where he can have continued due process and face these charges. So it's with that I will turn it over to first assistant Mike Mancuso.
DA - Thank you, Major. Good afternoon, everybody. I'm Mike Mancuso with the DA's office, the first Assistant District Attorney. I want to give my condolences to the families of the victims out in Idaho for their loss. It's my sincere hope that this marks a clear step in the right direction of effectuating justice for those folks. My office's role was relatively recent. We weren't advised of the presence of the defendant in our county until only a couple days before the apprehension of the defendant. But when we were told, we came together and worked very closely with Captain Kramer, who did an excellent job in almost like a clockwork operation. Part of my duties were to ensure that three separate search warrants were issued. Those affidavits attached to those search warrants are still under seal, so I can't discuss their contents with you, but one was for the person of Mr. Kohberger, collecting DNA and photographs, that sort of thing. One was for the White Elantra vehicle. Which I understand has been seized and is being processed, and one was for the address, the residence itself, that he was living in, with his family. I was at the scene and I have to say that Major Paris and Captain Norm Kramer did an outstanding job in coordinating the efforts, not only of the numerous Pennsylvania State Police troopers there, but officers from other jurisdictions and disciplines within those jurisdictions, to make this a very smooth, highly competent, professional operation. It is a quirk, apparently it's not in the norm of the states I'm familiar with, that Idaho does not release the probable cause affidavit in support of the arrest warrant until after their defendant is returned to that state. But having read those documents and the sealed affidavits of probable cause, I definitely believe that one of the main reasons the defendant chose to waive extradition and hurry his return back to Idaho was the need to know what was in those documents. So that's a significant development. Beyond that, looking at the scope of the situation and the ties this defendant has to my county, I would hold our office at the disposal of the Idaho authorities to help facilitate a complete background investigation into the defendant. Both activities prior to the murders occurring within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and his activities after the murders in Pennsylvania. So we stand ready to assist with that effort on an ongoing basis. Thank you.
Reporter - Can you tell us what state police specifically did?. Can you give us any indication, to the operations of state police, when you were notified?. You talked about putting tactical in the area - How long were they there and what's the... ?.
Major - We're not in a position to give you an exact time. It was, at some point, prior to when the surveillance was taken as the investigation progressed to a point where search warrants could be obtained and the probable cause for those search warrants and an arrest warrant, a fugitive from justice warrant based on the arrest warrant out in Idaho were obtained, we began to take the tactical steps to plan to serve them.
Reporter - (
inaudible) evidence prior to his arrest?.
Major - At this point, like we said, it's very much pertinent to what's in the affidavits which we cannot speak about.
Reporter - What was his actual demeanour when the arrest actually happened?.
Major - Present sense impression, likewise, on going investigation can't discuss.
Reporter - How is Kohberger being transported back to Idaho?.
Major - Those arrangements are being discussed right now, as well as the logistics. The court order says, those of you who heard it today, it's within the next 10 days so we're currently working on that in coordination with authorities out in Idaho.
Reporter - The defendants (
inaudible).
Major - I can't comment. I don't know.
Reporter - Is he being held in the Monroe County Jail until he's extradited or is he removed to another... ?.
Major - No. He was dropped off there Friday morning. He's resided in Monroe County prison.
Reporter - (
inaudible) extradited?.
Major - At this point that's still being coordinated between the state police and the authorities out there, we don't know.
Reporter - Will the affidavit be unsealed when he arrives in Idaho?.
Major - I don't want to speak out of my lane. When I watched the press conference on Friday at 1:00 pm. PT, I was alerted to the fact that, according to Idaho State law, the affidavits have to be served to him once he's extradited back before they can be unsealed.
Reporter - (
inaudible) anyone else been arrested?.
Major - On going investigation.
Reporter - Has a motive been determined?.
Major - I can't comment on that either, I apologise.
Reporter - (
inaudible) Pennsylvania Police, the Monroe County Sheriff's Dept.?
Major - He's presently back.. he was transported from the courthouse by Monroe County Sheriff and the logistics of who's going to transport him out to Idaho are still being discussed. We don't know.
Reporter - Can you confirm the time of his arrest and how much (
inaudible)?.
Major - I would say it was in the early morning hours of Friday, December 30th. Tactical assets on scene were probably in the neighbourhood of 50.
Reporter - Were you afraid he was going to get tipped off before you got him?.
Major - I would say overall about this entire operation, and the credit goes... this is a part that the state police played humbly. You look at Moscow Police Department - 38 sworn, 19,000 leads, the video evidence that they had to develop in order to put that out, all public source information. But when you talk about the service of a high risk warrant for someone who's committed or alleged to have committed 4 homicides, there's nothing routine about that. And all of those tactical steps that were taken were in conjunction with the best efforts of the authorities, local, state and federal, both in Idaho and here, to ensure that we could do it safely and to ensure that we could get him into custody and that those search warrants could occur.
Reporter - You describe having read, to a degree, the contents of that affidavit, probable cause and that you possibly speculated or theorised that he wanted to get back to read that as well, since he can't read that. Can you give us an indication though of the seriousness of what he did do?. I know you can't talk about, but can you share with us something?.
DA - I can't get into the details, Sir, but I can say it involved the defendants connection to a scene of a crime, consisting of four murdered people, so that's the significance of it.
Reporter - Can you confirm that there is a connection between Bryan Kohberger and any of the victims?.
DA - I can't discuss that.
Reporter - How confident are you that he is guilty of these crimes?.
DA - That wouldn't be my place to say. Certainly confident enough that there was ample probable cause for the issuance of the various warrants in the case.
Reporter - What was your reaction when you heard this?. You've all talked about you followed this, this happened states away - When you all got that call that this person could be right here in your home area. What's your reaction?.
DA - Well, I was surprised, really. Monroe County of all places. It hits close to home. It's a normal human reaction, I would think under the circumstances.
Reporter - Do you know when he and his father left Idaho, Washington and drove to Pennsylvania, what that date was?.
DA - No. I don't know the exact date.
Reporter - We understand the middle of December, is that correct?.
DA - I think that's approximate.
Reporter - We heard reports that they were stopped, not once, but twice on the highway - Can you elaborate?.
DA - I'll defer to his Pennsylvania public defender on that.
Reporter - Do you have reason to believe that Kohberger is connected to other crimes and unsolved mysteries in the area?.
DA - I wouldn't answer that question at this time.
Reporter - Will you start looking at some that maybe unsolved or that ?.
DA - That would be a normal thing to do.
Reporter - You said he was taken without incident. Did it seem like he was expecting it?.
Major - I wouldn't comment on what his present sense was, I would just comment that the professionalism of the SERT team, and their tactical training, definitely proved in a situation like this to do it in the most tactically sound and fastest way possible.
Reporter - Was there anybody else in the house at the time?.
Major - Yes. His parents were in the house at the time.
Reporter - Did they say anything to you?.
Major - Again, presence sense impression, I can't comment on that. Ongoing investigation.
Reporter - Did you break down the door?.
Major - Force was used. The warrants were issued for evening search warrants, which in Pennsylvania requires additional probable cause in order to serve them at the hours of darkness. I would defer to the first assistant to talk about the legal burden that you bear in order to obtain those, but from a tactical standpoint, based upon all of the briefings that we had developed and all of the intelligence we had developed, we thought that was the best time to serve it.
Reporter - What tipped off that Pennsylvania was involved with this?.
Major - They were alerted by the FBI, troopers and the Bureau of Criminal Investigation were alerted.
Reporter - Anything on his social media pages that tipped anything?.
Major - I can't comment. I don't know.
Reporter - Have his parents been cooperative during this whole process?.
Major - Can't comment, ongoing like I said. State police's role here was to serve the warrants and assist with the surveillance, which we've done. We've been part of major investigations. These are men and women who take an oath to protect their communities and the Commonwealth here. We're very humbled with the opportunity that we had - given a case that has really gained international attention, to play a small part in it, and our hat is off to Moscow PD again. With the size and the complexity of this investigation and the work that they've done to get us here today, and this is only the beginning of the next step.
Reporter - If it's determined that anyone here in Pennsylvania either helped to conceal or helped dispose of any evidence - Then you would be a part of this case or would it go to... ?.
Major - I would say that we would pledge whatever support we can for on going investigations with the Idaho authorities here in Pennsylvania. Absolutely. We would help them in any way we could.
Reporter - Were there any weapons found in the home?.
Major - I don't want to get into what was actually seized in the house, pursuant to the evidentiary nature of it.
Reporter - Can you give any insight into why you all decided to go in overnight to make the arrest?.
Major - Those are tactical decisions in terms of surveillance. I don't want to give out too many tactical factors that go into that situation, but, obviously, surveillance was conducted and we wanted to go in at a time when we thought it would be the safest for everybody. Safest for anybody else in the house, safest for Mr. Kohberger and safest for our people.
Reporter - There was an interesting question asked earlier about the care that needed to be taken to not tip the suspect off. Could you describe how long that lead had to be on things and how many people were involved in it?. Like, how many people knew and for how long?.
Major - I would answer the question this way - I don't want to get into a timeline in terms of when we were notified by the FBI when the surveillance began. Obviously, we know on Thursday night into Friday morning is when the warrants were served. I would say as a credit to the professionals both standing behind me and others not here, many others not here, the information was held very close. And we did not want to have any situation where Mr. Kohberger, potentially, would be tipped off. So as a result of that, I would say a close number of approximately 7 to 8 individuals, maybe 10 on the most, within the PSP side of this operation, knew about it.
Reporter - For days, can we say or.. ?.
Major -I would say for a period of time. I would not feel comfortable commenting anymore than that for a period of time. And then as the tactical assets were brought in, people were briefed.
Reporter - When the movement plan is finally decided, will there be an announcement?.
Major - Not from the state police. We would defer to Moscow and the authorities in Idaho.
Reporter - (
inaudible) leaving Pennsylvania?.
Major - We have security concerns now, obviously, to move any prisoner, anytime you move somebody from a secure prison to another place, there won't be an announcement from the state police in terms of those logistics, but they're being worked on right now.
Reporter - Can you give us a best guess of when you think he might be moved, roughly?.
Major - We would like to do it as soon as possible, but the court order says 10 days. We have 10 days to coordinate.
Reporter - Could he be on a plane tonight?. Is it possible he could be on a plane tonight?. That's a possibility right?.
Major - I would think that's probably not likely.
Reporter - A private plane, or would you fly commercial?.
Major - We're looking into that right now.
Reporter - Can you confirm or deny that a window was broken in order to gain access into the home?.
Major - There were multiple windows that were broken, I believe, to gain access, as well as multiple doors and I think the video of the house, after the fact, confirms that, and that would all be part of the tactical plan based on the floor plan of the house etc. and what the SERT operators would do to serve those warrants.
Reporter - Was the suspect on your radar before?. And are you looking at any connections?.
Major - Wouldn't comment on that, based on the ongoing nature.
Reporter - Does he have a criminal past?. According to the UJS, I didn't see anything.
Major - Can't comment on a person's criminal history during an ongoing investigation.
Reporter - Mr. Mancuso said that you stand ready to assist in giving complete background of the defendant. What specifically is law enforcement interested in?.
DA - In any case of this nature, and I've prosecuted a fair share of homicides, double homicides, that sort of thing - you want to look at any evidence of possible motive. You want to look at any evidence of a pattern, a modus operandi or method. You wanna get into the subjects character, mental state, to the best you can, that sort of thing. So it would be an all encompassing effort which we stand ready for. Thankyou.
www.wpbf.com
