Idaho Murderer Bryan Kohberger’s Sister Says She “Would Have Turned Him In” If She Knew of His Crime

When Bryan Kohberger murdered four University of Idaho students in 2022, he changed the lives of their families forever. But his crimes have also had a profound impact on his own family—and now, his sister Mel Kohberger is talking about it.

In a new interview with The New York Times, the 34-year-old details spending Christmas in Pennsylvania with her parents, MaryAnn Kohberger and Michael Kohberger, brother Bryan and sister Amanda Kohberger in 2022, hugging her brother tightly and playing games together as a family. Days later, on December 30, 2022, Bryan was arrested for the murders of Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, which took place in November of that year.

Mel maintains that the family had no clue at the time that 31-year-old Bryan could have been capable of such a heinous crime. “I have always been a person who has spoken up for what was right,” she told the newspaper. “If I ever had a reason to believe my brother did anything, I would have turned him in.”

She even recalled warning Bryan after hearing about the murders on the Moscow, Idaho college campus located a 15 minute drive from where he lived in Pullman, Washington. “Bryan, you are running outside and this psycho killer is on the loose. Be careful,” she told him.

The scrutiny on her family has been difficult to contend with for Mel, who was forced to leave a mental health counselor job she was training for because of it. “It’s confusing,” she said. “It’s painful. It’s like being victimized but not really being a victim.”

Mel revealed that the family keeps in contact with Bryan, who pleaded guilty to the crimes, via regular phone calls, but that they are also heartbroken for the loved ones of the victims. “The idea [of their pain] is making me so emotional that I can barely speak to you about it,” she said.