‘Misogynistic’ Bryan Kohberger had female WSU students taking ‘precautions’ to avoid him

Bryan Kohberger’s troubling behavior at Washington State University raised red flags long before he was convicted of murdering four University of Idaho students. Newly unsealed documents reveal that female classmates took active precautions to protect themselves from the criminology Ph.D. student, who developed a reputation for being misogynistic on campus.

According to records and interviews obtained by People, Kohberger faced 13 formal complaints within just three months of beginning his doctoral program in criminology at Washington State University in 2022. The complaints, many filed by women, detailed discriminatory comments, harassment, and behavior that made female students feel unsafe.

Kohberger: “condescending, narcissistic, and overtly misogynistic”

According to People, female WSU students described Kohberger as condescending, narcissistic, and overtly misogynistic. One classmate told investigators he consistently spoke down to women and dismissed female professors, often arriving late to their classes. A group of students reportedly kept a board tracking each instance of his behavior.

Another doctoral student said he wanted “to be seen as the strongest, smartest, most important person in the room,” while showing no empathy for others. Staff members also noted his discriminatory comments, calling them homophobic, ableist, xenophobic, and misogynistic.

Someone “lurking” outside a female student’s house

One undergraduate who worked in the criminology department told investigators that Kohberger would corner her in her office and force unwanted conversations. After he asked her out — despite her telling him she had a girlfriend — she grew so uneasy that she arranged for her boss to drive her home so she wouldn’t have to walk alone. Friends worried about the “precautions” she felt compelled to take to avoid him.

The same student also recounted that her neighbor spotted someone lurking outside her window, and she later learned Kohberger lived nearby. Another woman said his habit of leaning uncomfortably close and staring at female students made them uneasy.

Kohberger “verbally kidnapped” one male student

According to the official documents, while much of the concern centered on Kohberger’s behavior toward women, some male students also described disturbing encounters. One said he was “verbally kidnapped” in a three-hour parking lot conversation, during which Kohberger bragged that he could “pick up any woman he wanted in bars and clubs.”

The atmosphere grew so tense that first-year criminology students were required to attend discrimination training because of Kohberger’s conduct. The training was held on November 8, 2022 — just days before the murders that shocked the nation.

From complaints to conviction

In November 2022, University of Idaho students Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle, and Ethan Chapin were found brutally stabbed to death inside an off-campus home in Moscow, Idaho. Kohberger was later arrested and charged.

After accepting a plea deal to avoid the penalty, in July 2025, Kohberger received four consecutive life sentences without parole, plus an additional 10 years for burglary, and was ordered to pay $250,000 in fines and penalties.