Crime

The Idaho murder suspect's family is urging the public to refrain from judgment, and to presume he's innocent -- this as more info about his background starts to surface, including the notion he was a black sheep in his field of study ... understanding the criminal mind.

A statement by the Kohberger family was just released -- and obtained by TMZ -- which both addresses the charges against Bryan Kohberger and the murders that happened in Idaho.

It reads, "First and foremost, we care deeply for the four families who have lost their precious children. There are no words that can adequately express the sadness we feel, and we pray each day for them. We will continue to let the legal process unfold and as a family we will love and support our son and brother."

The Kohberger family adds, "We have fully cooperated with law enforcement agencies in an attempt to seek the truth and promote his presumption of innocence rather than judge unknown facts and make erroneous assumptions. We respect privacy in this matter as our family and the families suffering loss can move forward through the legal process."

In other words, they're standing by Bryan for now ... and, like everyone else, want to see what exactly prosecutors have against him that makes them believe he's the killer. The timing of this comes on the heels of a troubling profile that's emerging ... one of an outsider who was obsessive over dissecting the mind of a murderer, to a T.

The New York Times spoke to a handful of Bryan Kohberger's former classmates and colleagues while he attended DeSales University and Washington State University, pursuing degrees in criminology. By most accounts, he was deeply entrenched in his major, but to a point that it was off-putting and combative ... which reportedly led to conflict in his life.

There are two specific anecdotes that paint a picture of the type of person Kohberger was in academia -- both of which happened at WSU. In one instance, a former classmate of his tells the Times that Kohberger once got into a heated discussion with another fellow Ph.D. student about a criminology concept ... and was accused of mansplaining to the woman. She got so upset over the conversation that she left the class, leaving behind personal items.

Kohberger was also a T.A. at WSU, but a student who was in one the classes he helped teach says he avoided eye contact with them all ... and was supposedly a harsh grader, leaving extensive notes on their papers. It got so bad, the students complained en masse.

This same student also claims that later in the fall -- around the time of the Idaho killings -- Kohberger loosened up on grading, and stopped leaving notes on their papers altogether.

There are other accounts of Bryan being highly engaged in discussions about criminology -- and the NYT piece also notes he was under the tutelage of professors who focused on serial killers and gruesome crimes. The story points out that many at DeSales and WSU viewed him as quiet, awkward and on his own ... while also overly intrigued with the curriculum.

We've already heard other stories about Bryan that make him out to be aggressive and quick to anger -- but clearly, his loved ones want everyone not to jump to conclusions based on any of that.

Bryan Kohberger seems inclined not to fight Idaho authorities wanting him in their jurisdiction ASAP -- but sounds confident he'll beat the charges ... according to his lawyer.

Jason LaBar -- Kohberger's extradition hearing attorney -- tells TMZ his client is, for now, likely to waive his right to have his looming transportation back to ID heard in front of a judge ... which, if it holds true, would mean Kohberger will get shipped back Latah County this upcoming week without any further delay -- where he'd be expected to enter a plea.

While LaBar notes Kohberger has neither denied or admitted to the charges against him -- implicitly or explicitly -- he did say his client told him he felt he would be exonerated, which obviously suggests he believes he's innocent.

We're told Kohberger and his parents are shocked by his arrest -- telling us their home in PA was descended upon by feds very early Friday morning ... where they were surrounded by law enforcement and instructed to comply, which LaBar says Kohberger did without issue.

Part of the reason Kohberger might wanna get this over with quickly has to do with the fact he told his attorney he wasn't on the run. On the contrary, LaBar says Kohberger relayed that he and his father drove a white Hyundai from Washington -- where Bryan currently attends university -- back to PA on Dec. 18 ... a plan they'd apparently had all along.

The implication ... Kohberger was neither in hiding nor fleeing, as the murders occurred in mid-November. Remember, though ... Kohberger was within a stone's throw from the University of Idaho during this time -- pursuing a graduate's degree in criminology at Washington State University -- so this supposedly chill father-son road trip doesn't really clear him one way or another. It simply explains his movements during the holidays.

Of course, Kohberger has time to change his mind on the extradition hearing -- which could jam things up. Otherwise, court proceedings will begin and prosecutors will have to show their cards on what exactly they have that implicates him as the quadruple murderer.

There have been reports saying Kohberger has been getting surveilled for a while now, and that the feds were tracking his whereabouts these past few weeks. Also, the word is that the police have DNA evidence -- putting him at the scene of the crime -- and a match on the Hyundai seen in the area that night ... which they've reportedly traced to Kohberger.

Bill Cosby accuser Stacey Pinkerton is taking him to court ... suing over a sexual assault she claims happened during the comedian's time on "The Cosby Show" ... but Cosby's camp says it's a money grab.

According to the lawsuit, obtained by TMZ, Stacey claims Bill sexually assaulted her way back in 1986 when she was approximately 21 years old ... and she says he used his power, influence and authority as a 'Cosby Show' star to groom her.

Stacey claims she met Bill in 1986 and he invited her to New York, where the NBC hit sitcom was filmed, to be on the show. She says she was working as a flight attendant and model at the time and Bill promised to help her career.

In the docs, Stacey claims she agreed to hang out with Bill in New York under the pretense Cosby was interested in advancing her career as a model and actress ... but she claims he had ulterior motives.

Stacey claims Bill took her to the 'Cosby Show' studio in New York and they filmed an episode, though she didn't appear in the final edit. She says he put her up in a hotel and gave her money, which she claims was a manipulation tactic to gain her trust.

Under the guise of helping her career, Stacey claims Bill arranged for them to meet again in 1986, this time in Chicago, and she says he drugged her food at dinner and then took her to a private hotel room at the Drake Hotel where he sexually assaulted her and forced her to have intercourse.

Stacey claims she was incapable of consent because she was physically helpless ... and she says he used his power, influence and status to silence her after the assault.

In the suit, Stacey claims Bill's people called her in September 1986 and told her he wanted her in the audience for a comedy show, and she says she went there in order to confront him.

Stacey claims when the show was over Bill came over to her and forcefully kissed her and touched her butt without her consent. She says she started yelling and was booted from the venue.

She's suing Cosby for sexual battery ... and she's going after him for damages.

Tyler Sanders, a teenage actor with roles in big shows like "9-1-1: Lone Star" and "Fear the Walking Dead," died from the effects of fentanyl ... according to his autopsy report.

According to the report, obtained by TMZ, the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner also notes the 18-year-old's death was accidental.

As we first reported ... Tyler was found dead June 16 in his Los Angeles home. Sources connected to the death investigation told us he had a history of drug use and police found a plastic straw and white powder in the room where he died.

In the autopsy report, the ME says Tyler told a friend in text messages the night before his death he was using fentanyl. The report says Tyler did not answer phone calls from the friend after sending the text about fentanyl.

What's more, the coroner says Tyler had no known medical problems but had a history of drug abuse ... including heroin, cocaine, LSD, mushrooms and Xanax.

Jack the Ripper's face has finally been unmasked -- or so it appears -- after staying under wraps for more than a century, this according to a newly discovered artifact.

The chilling mug of one of the world's most elusive and infamous serial murderers was allegedly found carved into the wooden handle of a walking stick once owned by the London cop tasked with capturing the killer.

Scotland Yard Detective Frederick Abberline spent years trying to track down the mysterious butcherer, but failed to do so. He was gifted the cane after he got booted from the case. He retired from the police force in 1892 and died in 1929.

Just a little background on "the Ripper" ... He slaughtered five women across London's East End in 1888, slashing their throats and dissecting their bodies. He mailed part of a kidney from one victim to the investigators with taunting letters giving himself the moniker, "Jack the Ripper." Police believed he had a background in human anatomy because of his gruesome handiwork.

Back to the facial artifact ... Abberline's wooden cane was stored for years at the Police College in Bramshill, Hampshire, UK, but was thought to be lost after the institution closed in 2015.

Miraculously. the cane resurfaced at the College of Policing's headquarters in Ryton, West Midlands. Staff workers were recently looking through various memorabilia from the Bramshill shutdown when they stumbled upon the historic artifact.

Jack the Ripper's purported face has now been put on display to show new officer recruits advancements in police technology. At the time, detectives began experimenting with new techniques to solve the puzzling case.

Valerie Bertinelli is not about to become a crime victim ... because she's got an eagle eye on would-be burglars who are hitting her neighborhood and gave them a big surprise.

The actress/Food Network host lives in an area of L.A. where there have been a string of burglaries, including the house next door to hers.

Well, in the wee hours of Wednesday, 2 guys -- maybe the culprits in the neighborhood -- approached her door at separate times and started scoping out her home. One of the guys was carrying a backpack and several bags. He walks near the camera and apparently spots it, because he beats a hasty retreat. Mission accomplished!!!

The 62-year-old said, "I think he stops because he sees my camera lit up. The other one came an hour before him."

Eddie Van Halen's ex was honest ... "F***ing scary,"

She called the cops, who apparently are still on the hunt for these guys, and is doubling down on precautions ... "I'm installing more motion detector lights and thinking of putting barbed wire on my front fence. And of course my alarm gets set every night."

Police have all but cleared a University of Idaho professor accused by a TikTok user of ordering the brutal murders of 4 college students.

Moscow PD released a statement Tuesday, saying that at this time "detectives do not believe the female associate professor and chair of the history department" is involved in the slayings. Not only that, but police have not publicly ID'd a single suspect after 6 weeks of investigation.

Professor Rebecca Scofield filed a federal suit last Wednesday, claiming Ashley Guillard posted TikTok videos accusing Scofield of ordering the fatal stabbings of Kalyee Goncalves, Maddie Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin.

According to the suit, obtained by TMZ, Guillard has over 100,000 TikTok followers and received 2.5 million likes on the Scofield videos, damaging the professor's reputation.

In the docs, Scofield denies any connection to the crimes, stating that she was visiting friends in Oregon at the time of the November 13 massacre. Scofield also says she didn't know any of the victims, nor did they take any of her classes. All 4 victims were attending the University of Idaho.

The suit describes Guillard as an Internet sleuth who purports to have solved high-profile murder cases, such as the shooting death of Migos star Takeoff, by simply reading tarot cards.

Idaho police have a new lead in the unsolved murders of 4 college students ... two of the victims were caught on surveillance video inside a bar just before the massacre.

The leaked footage -- which is actually a screen grab posted to Reddit -- apparently shows Kaylee Goncalves and Maddie Mogen with some guy in the Corner Club in Moscow, ID. Other young men are seen chatting and hanging out around them. Nothing seems out of the ordinary or nefarious. The time stamp on the image reads 1:32 AM on November 13, 2022.

A short time later, Goncalves and Mogen were driven by a private cab to their off-campus house, where they were fatally stabbed with their roommate, Xana Kernodle, and herboyfriend, Ethan Chapin. All four victims attended the University of Idaho.

Moscow PD tells TMZ ... detectives have previously analyzed video from the Corner Club, which is popular among the college crowd in town. But, police stopped short of saying they had reviewed and authenticated the latest footage.

Moscow PD seems to still be struggling to find significant leads in the case of the slain college students ... but the cops investigating have been offered counseling as pressure to get answers ramps up.

The counseling services have been activated in the department as a way to take "care of our officers," according to department spokesman Captain Anthony Dahlinger ... who told DailyMail the resources are there "for anyone who needs them, and our priority is to keep our force healthy as we work until we get this investigation to its conclusion."

Capt. Dahlinger says morale is still high, however ... adding, "We're all committed to seeing this investigation through to the end – it being the holidays is kind of moot. We're just focused on that goal."

A rep for the department confirms the news with TMZ, and says "Our officers and their families are continually offered support through several avenues including our regional Peer Support Team," adding counseling will continue to be offered on an as-needed basis.

We're also told patrols around Moscow and Univ. of Idaho are constant and will continue -- thanks to the help from Idaho State Police.

A man who lived in the house where 4 University of Idaho students were brutally killed is baffled no one heard the sounds of death, because the house itself had to give off signals something terrible was happening.

Cole Alteneder, who graduated from the University, told ABC News, "It's definitely an old, creaky house ... You can't walk up any of the stairs or on any of the floors without everybody in the house knowing it."

As we reported, there were 6 people in the house at the time of the quadruple murders ... 2 people were spared and say they heard nothing. Police have said the 2 survivors are not suspects.

Cole says the house and the area surrounding it were well-known places to party, adding, "... people would hop the fences and just, like, walk away if the cops came."

Lots of people in the area knew the house and had access, and cops say they have been chasing down leads since the brutal murders.

Idaho detectives probing the savage murders of 4 college students have come under fire for failing to solve the case after six weeks, with some doubting their competence ... but at least one victim's family believes the cops have the wherewithal to bring the killer/killers to justice.

Ben Mogen -- father of slain University of Idaho student Maddie Mogen -- told The Spokesman-Review he has no doubt Moscow PD will solve the baffling quadruple homicide with biological and visual evidence.

"From the very beginning, I've known that people don't get away with these things these days. There's too many things that you can get caught up on, like DNA and videos everywhere. This isn't something that people get away with, that goes unsolved."

Maddie and her fellow classmates -- Kaylee Goncalves, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin -- were fatally stabbed in an off-campus house on Nov. 13. The unknown assailant/assailants are still at large. Police have not disclosed a motive.

Despite the lack of answers, Ben Mogen threw his support behind the case investigators..."I have to just know that they know what they're doing, and if they don't, then they know someone that does," referring to the FBI and the Idaho State Police -- both of whom are assisting the Moscow Police in the investigation.

Mogen gave one investigator in particular props for regularly keeping him in the loop on developments in the case. But, he still admits he's waiting for answers to "so many questions."

Tory Lanez is now behind bars awaiting sentencing after being convicted for shooting Megan Thee Stallion -- and on Christmas Day ... here's what's waiting for him in the cafeteria.

TMZ has gotten a rundown on what the Los Angeles Sheriffs Department is cooking up Sunday for their inmates in jail ... and with Tory now being one of them, for the time being, he's definitely getting the same meal as everyone else -- and it doesn't sound half bad.

According to LASD, their corrections facilities have quite the food lineup ... including 4 oz of roast turkey, 4 oz of mashed potatoes, 2 oz of gravy, 1 oz of cranberry sauce, 4 oz of green beans, 1 cup of tossed green salad, a dinner roll, a pumpkin muffin and a chocolate milk.

The jails also have religious/medical diet options ... Halal, vegan, diabetic and everything in between -- none of which sound quite as appetizing as what's listed above. FWIW, Tory's currently being held at the Men's Central Jail just outside of Chinatown ... not too far from where he was in court for the past couple weeks, and where a jury found him guilty Friday.

Speaking of Friday, here's a photo of what may have been Tory's last meal on the outside. During an afternoon break amid jury deliberations ... TL and his crew were seen grabbing some pizza in DTLA.

Several New York Giants players and the team's announcer were inside the Mall of America Friday night when a 19-year-old man was shot and killed -- forcing the mall into lockdown -- just hours before the team was scheduled to play the Minnesota Vikings on Saturday.

Thankfully, all Giants team personnel are safe.

The Giants are staying across the street from the famous mall ... and a group of players headed over to do some shopping Friday night.

According to Bloomington police, there was an altercation between two groups of men before gunfire erupted around 7:50 PM in Nordstrom. The teenage victim was hit multiple times and did not survive.

Following the shooting, the gigantic mall, busy with last-minute Christmas shoppers, was placed on lockdown.

"Everyone is back in the hotel and accounted for now," Giants PR man Pat Hanlon told the AP.

The identity of the players who were at the mall isn't known. It's also unclear how many Giants were on the premises when the shooting happened.

Bob Papa, longtime Giants radio announcer, was also at MoA Friday night.

Papa tweeted, "Scary here [at Mall of America]. Shooting in mall. On lockdown at #TwinCitiesGrill. Two gunmen at least one victim," before sending out an update about an hour later where Bob reassured his followers he was safely out of the mall.

Police have not yet made any arrests.

Being held hostage at gunpoint during work is not enough for Jessica Redfern to leave her front end team lead position at Walmart ... she tells us she's willing to return to her post.

Jessica, the Walmart employee seen on video being held hostage by a woman wielding a gun inside a Mississippi store, tells TMZ ... she's rightfully taking a few days off work after the scary incident, but doesn't have any plans to quit and look for a new job.

As we reported ... the hostage situation played out on video Wednesday night at a crowded Walmart in Richland, MS ... with Jessica being held against her will at gunpoint before police responded and ultimately shot and killed the suspect.

Jessica tells us Walmart is offering counseling services to her and the coworkers who had a front-row seat to the traumatic experience ... but she hasn't decided if undergoing counseling is the right move for her.

In the meantime, Jessica is dealing with police ... giving cops a statement. But, she's not ready to publicly address the hostage situation.

Jessica, who's worked at Walmart for 10 years, tells us one of her managers called her Thursday to check up on her ... and she's simply not ready to give up on the only job she's ever known.

The Idaho house where four students were stabbed to death was truly a party house ... new police body cam footage shows officers responding to a big bash at the pad, several weeks before the grisly murders ... meaning lots of people had easy access to the home.

The off-campus house hosted a wild party Sept. 1, and when police showed up for a noise complaint they were told the University of Idaho students who lived there weren't even home ... despite their pad being packed to the gills with revelers.

In the body cam footage, first obtained by the "Truth & Transparency" YouTube channel, Moscow police officers are banging on the front door for several minutes before someone finally answers and tells cops the residents left to hit up another party.

Five students lived in the home ... including three of the four students who were stabbed to death inside the home just two months after the party ... and the two guys who answered the door at the party told police none of them were there, despite the party raging on without them.

The cops eventually get in touch with one of the residents, Madison Mogen, talking to her on the phone. She's heard telling them "sorry" and says she's "frustrated" ... and cops tell her to "just come home."

As you know ... Mogen was found stabbed to death in the home Nov. 13, along with her housemates Kaylee Goncalves and Xana Kernodle, plus Kernodle's boyfriend Ethan Chapin.

Both sides have rested their case in Tory Lanez's shooting trial ... and now, the singer's fate will be decided by the jury.

The jury started deliberations Thursday, after 9 days of trial. Closing arguments from the prosecution started Wednesday afternoon, with Deputy District Attorney Alexander Bott making one last effort to convince jurors that Tory shot Megan Thee Stallion ... saying the case is simply about "a guy who shot a girl, then apologized for it."

Prosecutors also pointed to Tory's "bruised ego" as a reason he shot Meg.

The defense's closing argument went hard on Kelsey Harris, claiming she was the one that pulled the trigger -- while also calling Megan a liar, and claiming Tory was trying to save the day in the aftermath of the shooting.

The defense also tried to make the point that Megan was lying about Tory because they're both artists, and she's looking to stay on top in the music game.

We've also obtained the jury sample verdict form that they'll use in making their decision ... the document has been circulating online as alleged proof to Tory's guilt or innocence -- but the jury has not yet made a decision, the document is only a guide.

The judge is letting the jurors decide if they want to come in on Friday to continue deliberations -- the day before Christmas Eve ... so it's possible deliberations could continue into next week if a verdict isn't reached today.