Inside Idaho murders suspect Bryan Kohberger’s unusually long route home to Pennsylvania

EXCLUSIVE: A month after he allegedly stabbed four University of Idaho students, Bryan Kohberger and his father embarked on a cross-country odyssey in the vehicle of interest, went home to Pennsylvania from Washington State University.

The 28-year-old criminologist Ph.D. The student avoided the most direct route, which Google Maps says is a 38-hour drive along Interstates 90 and 94.

Was he trying to confuse authorities into enjoying a “scenic route” or avoiding inclement weather?

Kohberger and his father drove south down to Loma, Colorado near I-70, then turned east on a route that took them past Indianapolis en route, adding at least six hours to a drive they completed sometime between December 12 and December 16.

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Court documents do not specify exactly when Kohberger left his home in Pullman, Washington, about 10 miles from the crime scene. But the documents show his car triggered a license plate reader in Loma on December 13. The route takes the father-son duo about 15 hours.

Despite some reports that the FBI tracked down his whereabouts during this leg of his trip, authorities have vehemently denied it.

“The FBI is aware of reports detailing suspected FBI surveillance of Idaho murder victim Brian Kohberger,” an FBI spokesman told Fox News Digital on Thursday. “There are anonymous sources that are giving false information to the media.”

However, according to the same reports, the Kohbergers were allegedly worried about the snow up north in their 2015 Hyundai Elantra — a small sedan, almost a decade old, with front-wheel drive.

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And they had reason to, according to storm data just reviewed by FOX Weather.

“Meteorologists were tracking a coast-to-coast storm system for the week of December 12, and it didn’t matter which highway a driver chose, they were likely to encounter potentially dangerous weather,” explained Andrew Wulfeck, a digital content producer and weather forecaster at FOX Weather.

“The storm system was well predicted, resulting in day-long snowstorm conditions in the northern plains and severe weather in the south.”

— Andrew Wulfeck, meteorologist at FOX Weather

That is, the first hours their journey would have been treacherous they would have taken the most direct route — with whiteout conditions blanketing parts of the Northern Plains and upper Midwest with snow-capped feet.

“The first leg out of Idaho through the higher elevations of the Rockies would probably have been tough, with estimates of up to a foot of new powder per day,” Wulfeck said. “Once east of the Rockies, the southern routes seemed more optimal due to anticipated snowstorm conditions in the Northern Plains.”

The weather in the north was so bad that South Dakota authorities even closed several major freeways, including Interstate 90, on December 13, he added.

“A southern route would put a traveler closer to the warm zone of the system and further away from the effects of winter influences,” Wulfeck said. Snowfall did not affect Interstate 80 or any routes south of it.

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“East of the Rockies, [they] would only have been affected by rain and wind and not nearly as dangerous,” he said.

The detour south is among Kohberger’s least suspicious actions in the wake of the murders, according to criminal profiler and psychotherapist John Kelly. Police claim Kohberger returned to the scene hours after the murders, but before police received an 911 call. Authorities tracked his movements about 30 miles south of Lewiston that afternoon.

It’s this morning’s ride that Kelly said catches his eye.

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He may have disposed of evidence along the way, Kelly said, or he may have been in a “euphoric state,” contemplating the crime and enjoying the mountain scenery.

“We can’t call him a serial killer yet, and maybe never,” Kelly said. “But serial killers tend to drive a lot of miles in their cars. They spend a lot of time in stalking and voyeuristic situations where they have to drive and look for victims.”

“But serial killers tend to drive a lot of miles in their cars. They spend a lot of time in stalking and voyeuristic situations where they have to drive and look for victims.”

— John Kelly, criminal profiler

Kohberger is accused of breaking into a six-bedroom house on November 13 and killing four young people around 4 a.m. The victims, all University of Idaho students, have been identified as three roommates: Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, and Xana Kernodle, 20, and her visiting friend Ethan Chapin, 20.

On the way home, the Kohbergers passed through Hancock County, east of Indianapolis. A local deputy and a state trooper each stopped the duo – resulting in two bodycam videos that eventually gave the public the first sound of Kohberger’s voice.

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“He was suspicious — his behavior is suspicious,” Susan Constantine, a behavior analyst who specializes in body language and detecting deception, told Fox News Digital. “He’s a suspicious person, but he was suspicious of the officer. Why was he stopped?”

The intensity of his gaze, the way he leaned forward and one hand gripped the steering wheel, shows it, she said.

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“You can see that stalker in his eyes, that fixation, that’s a scary thing,” she said. “Evil looks you straight in the eyes.”

Kohberger was charged with burglary and quadruple murder. If convicted, he faces the death penalty.

A Latah County judge has scheduled his preliminary hearing for the week of June 26 and in the meantime he is being held without bail.

Fox News’ Haley Chi-Sing contributed to this report.