University of Idaho murders suspect Bryan Kohberger has been dragged into an investigation into a missing Pennsylvania woman who was recently found dead after being alerted by armchair detectives.
The remains of Dana Smithers, 45, were found late last month after she went missing in May 2022. She was last seen alive leaving a friend’s home in Monroe County — the same area Kohberger lived before moving across the country to attend Washington State University.
Smithers’ sister, Stacey Anne, revealed the connection was made by online sleuths who reached out to her with tips on a Facebook page dedicated to “Finding Dana.”
She wrote about the amateur sleuths in a post on January 2, thanking them for “reaching out recently regarding the possibility of the suspect in the horrific murders in Idaho having been in our area around the time of my sister, Dana’s disappearance.”
She added she forwarded the tips to local law enforcement, who would go on to discover Smithers’ body in a wooded area in Stroudsburg on April 27, about 30 miles from Kohberger’s family home. Her cause of death remains unknown.
Police are currently investigating any possible ties between Kohberger and Smither’s disappearance, with his parents recently called to testify before a Pennsylvania grand jury in the case, local outlet Eyewitness News WBRE/WYOU reported.
A source close to the case, however, said Kohberger has a solid alibi, according to the local outlet and he has never been named as a suspect in Smithers’ death.
The latest development surrounding Kohberger comes as the accused killer appeared in court in Moscow, Idaho, earlier this week. He faces murder charges over the deaths of four University of Idaho students who were stabbed as they slept in their off-campus home on Nov. 13, 2022.
Kohberger notably remained silent when asked how he pleaded over the five-count indictment related to the deaths of 21-year-olds Maddie Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves and 20-year-olds Ethan Chapin and Xana Kernodle. A judge then enbtered a not guilty plea on his behalf.
The case will go to trial on Oct. 2, and Kohberger remains incarcerated at the Latah County Jail.