Leaked crime scene photos from the 2022 Idaho student murders briefly surfaced online, sparking outrage and renewed pain for the victims’ families.
WEBDESK – Act Global Media – January 22, 2026
Moscow, Idaho, Jan. 21, 2026. Newly leaked crime scene photos from the brutal 2022 killings of four University of Idaho students have reignited national outrage and grief, after nearly 3,000 previously unseen images briefly appeared online before being abruptly removed.
The images, quietly uploaded and then scrubbed from the Idaho State Police website, offer a chilling look inside the off-campus home where Xana Kernodle, Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, and Ethan Chapin were killed in November 2022. Authorities have not explained how or why the photos were released.
Family members of the victims said they were notified only moments before the images became public.
“That’s the ‘heads up’ we received,” the Goncalves family said in a statement, urging the public to remember that “murder isn’t entertainment and crime scene photos aren’t content.”
The release has sparked renewed anger toward the criminal justice process surrounding Bryan Kohberger, who pleaded guilty last year to the quadruple murders and is now serving four life sentences without parole at Idaho’s maximum security prison. The plea deal spared him the death penalty, a decision that deeply frustrated some families and left lingering questions about motive unanswered.
While the photos have fueled online attention and debate, victims’ advocates warn that the circulation of such material risks retraumatizing families and sensationalizing violence. Legal experts also question whether the leak could prompt internal investigations or policy changes around evidence handling.
Idaho State Police have not commented publicly on the incident.
More than three years after the killings stunned the nation, the brief appearance of the images has reopened old wounds, reminding Americans that behind every headline and court filing are families still living with unimaginable loss.
