Family of Slain Idaho Student Rips Bryan Kohberger's Request to Withdraw Guilty Plea

The family of slain University of Idaho student Kaylee Goncalves is speaking out after her alleged murderer requested to withdraw his guilty plea ... and they're incensed.

In a statement, the Goncalves family called Bryan Kohberger "the mosquito you just can’t seem to swat."

Kaylee's family recalled how Kohberger pleaded guilty to the murders of Kaylee, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin ... saying, "He never cried foul, never claimed he was uninformed or pressured, and never suggested there were problems with the discovery materials he and his counsel had reviewed for two years that should have been challenged. He admitted his guilt."

The family continued ... "We would have preferred a death-penalty trial; we believe fully in the evidence. Instead, BK received exactly what he asked for: a deal that spared his life. Know this -- he hates that life. He wants another chance to roll the dice."

Kaylee's family assumes a court hearing will be on the horizon after Kohberger's stunning request.

They say ... "The defendant will get another day in court -- a welcome break from solitary confinement: a ride, perhaps different food, photos taken, and the spotlight once again fixed on him and his supposed 'innocence.'"

Kaylee's family concluded by saying the focus is on the wrong person, while taking another shot at Kohberger ... "The real tragedy is this: if even a fraction of the energy spent trying to free a guilty man were directed toward honoring the victims, there would be statues of them on every corner, parks bearing their names, and days set aside to remember the lives they lost at the hands of a narcissist."

They also had a few choice words for journalist Mike Baker -- who's writing a book about the case -- slamming him for giving Kohberger a platform in The New York Times.

Her family says ... "The piece had little else to offer beyond a guilty man once again claiming he is innocent."