JonBenét Ramsey’s Brother Gives ‘Tremendous Credit’ To Moscow Police For Asking For Outside Help In University Murders
While the family of victim Kaylee Goncalves has criticized aspects of the investigation, Andrew Ramsey says it's a positive sign that Moscow Police have requested help from the Idaho State Police and FBI.
The half-brother of JonBenét Ramsey is commending Moscow Police for turning to outside help in the ongoing investigation of four murdered University of Idaho students.
“I will give Moscow PD tremendous credit for turning to outside agencies for help,” Andrew Ramsey told Fox News.
The small Idaho college town was rocked last month when four students, Kaylee Goncalves, 21; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Ethan Chapin, 20; were discovered dead with multiple stab wounds in an off-campus rental home.
"Moscow PD are in a near impossible position," Ramsey said of the shocking homicides. "They simply don't have the experience to run a complex homicide investigation."
While he said local agencies are often capable of investigating murders with more obvious motives, he told the news outlet it’s a much different scenario when authorities may be “dealing with a violent psychopath who has no known relationship with the victim.”
Moscow Police Capt. Roger Lanier said in a video statement Tuesday that the department recognized it would need help from outside agencies, like the Idaho State Police and the FBI, almost immediately after the bodies were discovered around noon on Nov. 13.
“It became fairly apparent when I got to the scene that we were going to need resources outside of just what the Moscow police department could provide and we have a very, very good working relationship with the Idaho State Police,” he said. “We knew what their capabilities were and so that was the first call that we made, to have their investigative team come up and help us process the scene.”
He added that the FBI also got involved “almost immediately.”
“The general public doesn’t have any idea the scope of this investigation,” Lanier said. “The number of people that are involved, not just here in Moscow, but investigative and interview teams in the northern part of Idaho, southern part of Idaho, the eastern part of Idaho, resources from the Salt Lake City FBI office, analysts back in Virginia and the number of people that have flown here or driven here from great distances to just lend their specialty to this investigation.”
Despite the “amazing” team effort, the murders remain unsolved more than a month after the grisly discovery was made.
However, Lanier insisted this week that they “get tips every day that are viable.”
Ramsey has been openly critical of the Boulder, Colorado police tasked with investigating his sister’s 1996 murder, regularly calling them out on social media and in the media.
“If you haven’t noticed I got an issue with the @boulderpolice,” he wrote on Twitter in October. “They maliciously and wrongly defamed my family and have subverted justice by not searching for the killer of my sister #jonbenet. I will hold them accountable.”
JonBenét was found beaten and strangled to death in the basement of the family’s Boulder, Colorado home on Dec. 26, 1996.
The 6-year-old’s case has garnered international attention for decades, but it remains unsolved.
Ramsey believes that may have been different if Boulder Police had sought the assistance of other outside agencies from the beginning.
“In our case, the Boulder Police almost immediately told the more experienced Denver PD and FBI, 'No thanks, we got this.' Massive error and a good reason we are still here 26 years later with no arrest,” Ramsey told Fox News. “I pray for the families in Moscow they don't find themselves in a similar situation.”
Just last month, the City of Boulder announced that they planned to consult with the Colorado Cold Case Review Team, made up of professional investigative, analytical and forensic experts, on the JonBenét case next year in the hopes of uncovering new leads.
“As in any cold case homicide, the investigation can always benefit from the perspective of outside experts,” the city said at the time.
Boulder Police Chief Maris Herold also insisted the department “will never stop investigating until we find JonBenét’s killer.
“That includes following up on every lead and working with our policing partners and DNA experts around the country to solve this tragic case,” Herold said. “This investigation has always been and will continue to be a priority for the Boulder Police Department.”