Bryan Kohberger sister warned him about ‘psycho killer’ before arrest

Bryan Kohberger’s younger sister said she warned her brother that a “psychopathic killer” was on the loose after the killings of four University of Idaho students, unaware she was talking to the man who was later convicted of the brutal killings.

Bryan’s sister, Mel Kohberger, recalled the conversation she had with her brother in a recent interview. New York TimesMoscow said he panicked after hearing about the killings in Idaho. Kohberger pleaded guilty to the murders of Ethan Chapin, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves, who were killed on November 13, 2022.

“Bryan, you’re running outside and this psycho killer is running around,” he remembers telling his brother. “Being careful.”

Bryan thanked her for coming and assured Mel that she would be safe. Mel said Bryan was the kind of person who would go for runs late at night and leave his door open, encouraging her to come in.

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Mel recalled how Bryan was constantly bullied in his youth; Friends had previously said he was overweight and had a standoffish personality. As a teenager, Bryan said in online posts that he had no emotions, some regret, and felt like “an organic sack of meat with no value of his own,” according to the publication.

The sister said Bryan, who was addicted to heroin in his youth, once stole Mel’s phone and sold it at a mall so he could buy more drugs. Mel said his family was worried Bryan was heading for an early death, which happened to one of his friends. However, Mel said Bryan was receiving treatment and his condition was better.

“We were all so proud of him because he had overcome so much,” Mel said.

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Maryann Kohberger, mother of Bryan Kohberger (wearing sunglasses), leaves the Ada County Courthouse with her daughter Amanda Kohberger on Wednesday, July 23, 2025, in Boise, Idaho. The two were attending Bryan Kohberger’s sentencing for the 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students. (Derek Shook for Fox News Digital)

After treatment, Mel said that although Bryan remained socially awkward and aggressive at times, she never saw him as a violent person.

Bryan did not discuss the Idaho murders while staying at his parents’ Pennsylvania home in the days before the FBI raid, but Mel recalled him mentioning the incident once and noted that investigators were still looking for a suspect.

When Bryan was arrested on December 30, 2022, Mel recalled receiving a phone call from her older sister, Amanda.

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Police have identified the four victims of the University of Idaho quadruple homicide as Maddie Mogen, Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Kaylee Goncalves. (Instagram: @maddiemogen, @kayleegoncalves, @ethanchapin4)

“He said, ‘I’m with the FBI, Bryan’s been arrested,'” Mel said. he said. “‘Why?’ I thought.”

“Idaho murders,” Amanda replied.

Mel initially thought her sister might be playing a prank on her, then felt sick at the thought that her own brother was behind the murders of four college students.

Mel said her world was turned upside down overnight. Bryan’s sister said he was training to start his new job as a mental health counselor in New Jersey but agreed to resign after his new employer was inundated with investigations.

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Bryan Kohberger was sentenced to life in prison without parole for the murders of four University of Idaho students. (Idaho Department of Corrections)

Mel said she became angry after seeing online posts from people claiming her family knew Bryan killed four students at the University of Idaho.

“I have always been a person who stands up for what is right,” Mel said. “If I had reason to believe my brother had done something, I would have reported him.”