A 20-year-old student from Conway, Skagit County, was among the four University of Idaho students found dead in a home near the Moscow, Idaho, campus on Sunday.
On Monday, the Moscow Police Department identified the students as Ethan Chapin of Conway; Madison Mogen, a 21-year-old of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; Xana Kernodle, 20, of Avondale, Arizona; and Kaylee GonCalves, 21, of Rathdrum, Idaho.
Police said the deaths are being investigated as “homicides,” but they have not released the cause of deaths. Officers said they discovered the deaths just before noon when they responded to a report of an unconscious person.
“Details are limited in this investigation. Currently, there is no one in custody,” the police department said a news release. “The Moscow Police does not believe there is an ongoing community risk based on information gathered during the preliminary investigation.”
Chapin’s mother, Stacy Chapin, said her son, a triplet, was a best friend to his brother and sister. Chapin was a freshman and a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity, according to the university.
“It is an unspeakable tragedy and the pain is excruciating. Ethan was literally the greatest kid … friend to all and a smile that could light up any room,” she said in a statement Monday.
Before attending the University of Idaho, Chapin was a 2021 graduate of Mount Vernon High School, where he was a forward on the varsity basketball team. The Mount Vernon School District is providing students and staff with counselors this week after news of his death.
“Our hearts are with his family, friends, former teachers, counselors, and support staff,” district spokesperson Belle Vargas said Monday in an email.
Counselors are also available for students at university campus, according to the University of Idaho, which announced Sunday that classes statewide and online would be canceled Monday “out of respect for these fellow Vandals.”
“An event of this magnitude can understandably have significant impacts on those left behind,” University president Scott Green said in a statement. “As Vandals, we must come together and lift each other up.”
U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson said on Twitter that he and his wife were sending their deepest condolences to the university’s students’ families.
“Our hearts ache for your loss,” Simpson wrote. “Today we are all Vandals.”
Shortly after Moscow police announced the homicide investigation, students at the University of Virginia were also told to shelter in place after police said a suspect gunned down fellow students on a bus. The shooting left three members of the school’s football team dead and two other students injured.
Seattle times staff reporter Paige Cornwell contributed reporting. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.