Emily Brown
The stepfather of one of the four students brutally killed near the University of Idaho has described the loss as the 'hardest thing in the world' as the families continue to wait for updates.
Madison 'Maddie' Mogen had been in her rented home near the university's campus in Moscow, Idaho with her best friend Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Kernodle's boyfriend Ethan Chapin, 20, when the attack took place on 13 November.
Police were called at approximately midday from one of the surviving housemates' mobile phones, though the killings are believed to have taken place sometime after 1:45am local time.
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The cause and manner of death for all four victims has been ruled as homicide by stabbing, though police have not yet identified the person responsible.
Mogen's stepfather, Scott Laramie, who she called dad, has said the loss is 'still hard to believe' almost one month later.
"We get up in the morning, and it's like, ‘Nah this isn’t happening', then it kicks in," he told Fox News. "We love her and we miss her, and it's the hardest thing in the world to try to figure out how to live without her. It’s the hardest thing to imagine right now."
Mogen's biological father, Benjamin Mogen, has also said he doesn't know how a parent 'ever gets used to this'.
The Moscow Police Department is working with the FBI and the state police on the investigation, though Laramie claimed to have been told that police don't have any leads in the case.
The stepfather said police update the family 'every day', explaining: "We asked them to check in with us whether they have anything or not."
The lack of answers has left Laramie and the family feeling 'angry', and he expressed his hopes for a resolution as he added: "I’m just hoping they come up with something sooner than later. I just would like to have justice for these kids."
Police are asking for tips from members of the public on information regarding a possible stalker after explaining that a man appeared to be following Goncalves outside a local business.
Authorities said this was an isolated incident and was not an ongoing pattern of stalking, but explained: "Investigators continue looking into information about Kaylee having a stalker. Information about a potential stalker or unusual occurrences should go through the Tip Line."
On Saturday (3 December), Moscow police said they had received more than 2,000 email and phone tips, and more than 1,000 submissions to an FBI link in relation to the killings.