What to Know About Bryan Kohberger's Sister, Mel Kohberger By Emily Blackwood

In 2022, Mel Kohberger’s life was upended when her brother was arrested for stabbing four college students to death at an off-campus residence at the University of Idaho.

Bryan Kohberger later pleaded guilty to killing Kaylee Goncalves, 21, Madison Mogen, 21, Xana Kernodle, 20, and Ethan Chapin, 20, and was sentenced to four life terms in prison without parole plus 10 years for burglary.

After his arrest, the Kohberger family — Mel, her sister Amanda and their parents, Maryann and Michael — became the focus of tabloid attention and online speculation about whether they had known anything beforehand. Mel said she had no idea her brother was a killer.

“I have always been a person who has spoken up for what was right,” she told The New York Times in January 2026. “If I ever had a reason to believe my brother did anything, I would have turned him in.”

That interview marked the first time Mel had spoken publicly since her brother’s arrest. Here’s everything to know about Bryan Kohberger’s sister and what she’s said about his crimes.

They were raised in Pennsylvania 

Mel and her two siblings were raised in the Poconos Mountains in Pennsylvania, according to her interview with The New York Times. CBS News reported that their mom worked in the school system and their father was a maintenance employee.

She told The New York Times that Maryann raised her children with Catholic teachings and that both parents imparted values of self-reliance, loyalty and putting other people’s needs before their own.

Mel and Bryan also bonded over a shared interest in psychology and crime, and she said the whole family was “so proud” when Bryan got accepted into a Ph.D. program in criminology at Washington State University.

Mel claimed she never saw Bryan be violent 

When reflecting on their childhood, Bryan’s sister told The New York Times she never witnessed him be violent, even citing an incident where he de-escalated an argument between them by holding back her hands.

She did note, however, that her brother “had overcome so much” over the years. He was bullied for being overweight as a teenager and started using heroin. During his addiction, Bryan once allegedly stole Mel’s phone and sold it at the mall to buy more drugs.

Bryan eventually went through treatment, which Mel claimed had put him on a better path. He started studying psychology at DeSales University in eastern Pennsylvania and expressed an interest in becoming a police officer.

She told him to stay safe after the killings

After news of the murders of Goncalves, Mogen, Kernodle and Chapin spread in November 2022, Mel feared for her brother’s safety. She knew Bryan lived just 15 minutes from the site of the killings and would often leave his door unlocked during late-night jogs.

“Bryan, you are running outside and this psycho killer is on the loose,” she remembered telling him, per The New York Times. “Be careful.” He reportedly thanked her for the check-in and promised to stay safe.

Their sister, Amanda, told her about his arrest 

A month after Mel had relayed that message of safety, Bryan was arrested at their family’s home in Pennsylvania. He had returned to their parents’ house for the holidays, and Mel said they spent Christmas playing TV party games. One night, she cut her finger while cleaning up the kitchen, and Bryan, who she said expressed disgust at the sight of blood, helped her cover the cut with a bandage.

On Dec. 30, 2022, officers burst into the house in the middle of the night to make the arrest while Mel and the Kohbergers’ other sister, Amanda, weren’t home. Amanda was the one to break the news to her.

“She was like, ‘I’m with the F.B.I., Bryan’s been arrested,’ ” Mel told The New York Times. “I was like, ‘For what?’ ” Amanda responded, “The Idaho murders.”

Mel has worked in mental health counseling 

Mel had pursued a career in mental health counseling and was training for a job as a mental health therapist in New Jersey. But she told The New York Times that after her new employer became overwhelmed with inquiries, she agreed to leave the position before it formally began.

Related Stories

Where Is Bryan Kohberger Imprisoned? Inside the Idaho Complex Housing the College Killer

What Was Bryan Kohberger’s Motive? Everything to Know About What Led to the University of Idaho Murders

In addition to losing out on a job, Mel has also had people attempt to make money from the horrific crime off of her name. She cited a book about the case that appeared on Amazon with the author listed as “Melissa J. Kohberger.” 

“It’s confusing,” she said. “It’s painful. It’s like being victimized but not really being a victim.”

Mel and her family have remained in contact with Bryan

Since his arrest, Mel said she and her family have tried to support Brian. She told The New York Times that though they don’t discuss the case, they have regular calls where they talk about updates from home and their shared interest in psychology.

For one of his birthdays, Bryan told his family to make a cake Amanda would like and asked Mel to blow out the candles for him.

Though she did not attend his 2025 sentencing hearing to care for their father, whom she said had developed heart problems, Mel said she still found a way to show her support. She explained to The New York Times that a small heart drawing seen on a piece of paper in front of her brother — which was scrutinized by online sleuths and later described in tabloid headlines as “creepy” — was something she had drawn for him.

In reality, Mel said, the drawing was meant to let her brother know he was loved, even if she could not be there in person.