Bryan Kohberger has reportedly received money from his family and unnamed “third-party supporters,” even though the confessed quadruple murderer has now pushed back on one part of his plea agreement related to financial restitution.
As Fox News reports, Kohberger’s plea deal stipulated that he must pay $20,000 in civil judgments to the families of Xana Kernodle, Maddie Mogen, Ethan Chapin, and Kaylee Goncalves, as well as $250,000 in fines and fees.
However, Kohberger’s legal team claims he has no money and therefore should not pay the agreed-upon $27,000 to the Goncalves and Mogen families for accommodation and travel expenses.
In addition to claiming no money, Kohberger’s defense says under Idaho law, those family losses don’t apply because the Goncalves and Mogen families received funds through GoFundMe campaigns.
One fundraiser raised $73,493, another $48,815, and yet another $85,583. For this reason, according to Kohberger’s legal team, their request for additional restitution is invalid.
Who are Bryan Kohberger’s supporters?
Kohberger objects to paying more restitution to student murder victims’ families https://t.co/1ebiMmkxJ5
— The Columbian (@thecolumbian) October 22, 2025
The “third-party supporters” sending Kohberger money refer to donors beyond his immediate family, who have sent funds to him while he remains incarcerated. The exact amount Kohberger has received from family members or outside donors remains confidential.
However, court filings reference a detailed accounting of his inmate trust account in both Latah and Ada County jails. These filings indicate that family and third parties have made deposits on his behalf. Prosecutors have also sealed the identities of those “third-party supporters.” They say they will not make the list public.
But Kohberger has had supporters throughout the case who have contended that investigators framed him and that he is innocent. Various online posts and private letters suggest that some supporters believe Kohberger’s background as a criminology student should have prompted investigators to consider alternative theories. A small but vocal group on social media continues to argue that he is the target of prosecutorial overreach.
Though they represent a minority, these loyal followers have remained active throughout his arrest, trial preparations, and eventual plea.
The Kohberger case
In a high-profile case, Kohberger, a former criminology Ph.D. student at Washington State University, admitted guilt in July 2025 in the fatal stabbing of four undergraduates at the University of Idaho in Moscow, Idaho, in November 2022.
He accepted a plea deal to avoid the death penalty, receiving four consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole plus an additional ten years for burglary. He is currently incarcerated at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution in Kuna, Idaho. As of the latest filings, a hearing is pending on the motion to reverse or deny the additional restitution measures.
