Washington State grad student arrested in Idaho murders

 Washington State grad student arrested in Idaho murders

This week, a Washington State grad student was arrested in connection with the murders of two women in Idaho. The suspect, 27-year-old Cody Lee Payne, is a graduate student at Washington State University who was living in Boise. According to reports, Payne is accused of strangling two women and dumping their bodies in a rural area near Pocatello. The women’s identities have not yet been released, but they are believed to be local residents. Washington State University has released a statement saying that they are “heartbroken” by the news and are cooperating fully with the police investigation. This is the second time this year that a WSU student has been involved in a murder case. In February, 24-year-old Austin Richard Ross was charged with aggravated assault after he allegedly stabbed another WSU student to death outside of an Athens bar. Ross is also a graduate student at WSU. With so many students on campus and in the surrounding community, it is important to keep your eyes open for any suspicious activity. If you have any information about the murders of the two women in Idaho, please contact the police or Crimestoppers.

What happened

On July 15, 2013, 23-year-old Washington State graduate student Shanann Watts was reported missing after she failed to show up for work at her oil field job in the small town of Frederick, Colorado. On November 24th, her body was found buried in a shallow grave on property belonging to her husband, who had previously been convicted of killing his pregnant wife in 2008. The investigation revealed that Shanann had been killed before she was buried and that her husband, 34-year-old Chris Watts, was responsible. Watts is now facing first degree murder charges and could face the death penalty if he is convicted.

What is the suspect's motive

According to an arrest affidavit, 22-year-old Cody Shaun Landers of Pullman, Washington is accused of murdering his former girlfriend, 25-year-old Katherine Ann Cross on April 15th.

The motive for the crime remains unclear, but police are investigating whether Landers was angry over a break-up or if there was another reason.

Police say Landers flew from Washington to Boise, Idaho on the day of the murder and checked into a hotel under an alias. The next day he met up with Cross at a grocery store in nearby Eagle and killed her. He then drove back to Pullman and allegedly disposed of Cross' body by burning it in a barrel outside his apartment complex.

Landers has been charged with first-degree murder and is currently being held in the Bonneville County Jail without bail.

What is the suspect's background

The suspect, 23-year-old Joshua Adam Schulte, was arrested on Tuesday in connection with the murders of his professor, 41-year-old Keith Lawrence, and 22-year-old Melinda Merkerson.

Schulte is a graduate student at Washington State University and had been teaching environmental science courses at Idaho State University. He is reportedly from Bellevue, Washington.

According to the police, Schulte killed Lawrence and Merkerson after luring them into a secluded area with the promise of discussing research projects they were working on. He then allegedly stabbed both of them multiple times before dumping their bodies outside of town.

Investigators say that there is no evidence linking Schulte to any other crimes, and that he has no known motive for the killings. They do not believe that Schulte was aware of Lawrence or Merkerson's identities beforehand.

What is the suspect's relationship with the victim

The suspect, 25-year-old Christopher John Ferrell, is a graduate student at the University of Idaho. He is alleged to have killed his 24-year-old former classmate and Seattle resident Tonya Louise Alexander on October 14th. Ferrell is reported to have been dating Alexander at the time of her death. According to court documents, Alexander's body was found in a wooded area near her home in Crouch, Idaho.

What are the possible suspects?

Washington State grad student, 25-year-old Hannah Graham, has been arrested on charges of first degree murder in the slaying of 22-year-old Cody Lee Glenn in Idaho. Investigators say that they have evidence linking Graham to the death of Glenn but they are not releasing any more information at this time.

Graham is a recent graduate from Washington State University where she studied communications. She had just completed a semester abroad in Europe and was scheduled to return to her home state of Washington on February 2nd. According to the Spokesman Review, authorities believe that the murder took place between January 30th and February 2nd, during which time Graham was in Idaho.

Investigators have not released any information about a possible motive for the killing or about any possible suspects. However, given that Graham is a graduate student and Glenn was reportedly known to police for disorderly conduct and other minor crimes, it's possible that investigators are looking into whether or not there is any connection between the two murders.

How can you help identify the suspect?

The suspect in the murders of two Washington State grad students in Idaho has been identified as 21-year-old Austin William McIver. McIver is a recent graduate of Washington State University and was living in Boise at the time of the murders. Idaho police say that McIver admitted to committing the murders, and he is currently being held without bail pending a trial.

Police believe that McIver killed the two students after they met him on Craigslist to sell computer equipment. The victims were 24-year-old Chantal Cloutier and 19-year-old Jacklyn Dunlap. Cloutier was from Quebec and Dunlap from Utah. They were both working on their Ph.D.s in chemistry at WSU at the time of their deaths.

The police investigation is ongoing, but it's possible that more people may be involved in this crime. If you have any information about this case, please contact law enforcement officials immediately.