A survivor of the Idaho University killings reportedly thought that the sounds of her four housemates being brutally slaughtered were sounds of college students partying in the house and may have passed out after running into the accused killed Bryan Kohberger. This was one of the reasons she waited for eight hours to make a 911 call.
Dylan Mortensen, 21, allegedly cried out to her friends to calm down after mistaking the commotion for a party, a source familiar with the situation told NewsNation. In fact, according to the source, she also initially believed that Kohberger was a guest after she ran into him while he was fleeing the scene.
Unaware Roommate
There have been several questions surrounding the murders of the four University of Idaho students. Many questioned why it took Mortensen, one of the two survivors of the killings took eight hours to call the police.
It has now been revealed that Mortensen believed that her four friends were partying along with other college students when Kohberger was actually killing them in the early hours of November 13.
In fact, Mortensen reportedly called out to her friends and roommates to remain quiet. She allegedly opened her bedroom door around 4 am and yelled: "Calm down, you're being loud!" and "I'm trying to sleep!"
The insider said that she then shut and locked her door.
That night, Mortensen opened her door once more after hearing more loud noises and spotted the alleged murderer, whom she mistakenly believed to be a partygoer, the source claimed.
In another report, Mortensen claimed to have seen a mysterious "figure clad in black clothing and a mask" walking past her in the direction of the house's back exit soon after 4 am on November 13.
It took another eight hours before the cops were contacted at the off-campus residence. Authorities estimate that the four students were slain between 4 am and 4:25 am.
Sleeping With the Dead
Kohberger was arrested in December from the home of his parent in Pennsylvania. He has been charged with the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20.
Mortensen and Bethany Funke, 21, were both at home when the deaths occurred, but the killer didn't touch any of them. Speculators in the shocking case questioned why the surviving roommates waited eight hours before calling the police after the murders.
According to the preliminary information from an affidavit that was made public in January, one of the surviving roommates opened her door to discover a man who was "dressed in dark clothing and a mask" and had bushy eyebrows.
While the reason it took the two surviving roommates eight hours to alert the police is still unknown, former FBI agent Jennifer Coffindaffer speculated Mortensen may have been paralyzed with dread after seeing an unknown man inside her home late at night wearing all black and a mask.
Mortensen may have "passed out" as a result of stress or panic after confronting Kohberger, according to Coffindaffer.
"Let's talk DM: -21 -Late -Possibly under the influence -Face to Face with stranger in black feet away -Froze due to Fear -Locked herself in BR -I believe DM passed out from trauma/fear/stress -To think you could be killed is gripping; I know #idahosuspect," she tweeted Jan. 6.
Besides, Coffindaffer also posted an article from Medical News Today that explains the fight, flight or freeze response, and how it exists to "keep people safe, preparing them to face, escape, or hide from danger."
The article claims that while someone who is "frozen" in fear is powerless to stop the threat, they are "extremely alert." Another possible reaction is tonic immobility, also known as "flop," which is the full loss of bodily or mental awareness and may even involve fainting.
This comes as fresh details regarding the horrific killings verified Kaycee Goncalves and Madison Mogen were killed first, followed by Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle on the second story of the house.
Kernodle apparently tried to fight the killer and repeatedly tried to snatch the knife from suspect Kohberger as he repeatedly stabbed Chapin, who was killed in the doorway of Kernodle's room.
Her fingers were covered with severe cuts. Chapin reportedly had his neck slit.
It was also recently revealed that there are chances of the court in Kohberger's upcoming trial lifting the present gag order on the victims' families, who might be required to appear as witnesses.
As a result of the case's extensive media coverage, Latah County Magistrate Judge Megan Marshall issued the broad gag order in January, prohibiting lawyers, law enforcement officials, and anyone else connected to the case from speaking or writing about it.
Marshall stated in the gag order that the limitation on communication was required to safeguard Kohberger's right to a fair trial.
