As Bryan Kohberger sat emotionless during his sentencing hearing, a self-proclaimed psychopath believes she spotted the moment his ego crumbled.
TikToker ‘VicthePath,’ who says she has been diagnosed with the disorder, said it was Alivea Goncalves’s blistering speech about the murder of her younger sister Kaylee that pierced his emotional armor.
Although Kohberger has not been officially diagnosed with psychopathy, Vic believes he exhibits many of its traits and that Goncalves’s words will haunt him forever.
Goncalves called Kohberger ‘predictable, shallow, and not profound, and said, ‘The scariest thing about you is how painfully average you turned out to be.’
‘These are words that will echo in his mind and in prison,’ Vic said. ‘Because to deny he failed at what he set out to accomplish would create so much cognitive dissonance, there’s no way he can be comfortable in his own mind.’
Vic argued that Kohberger planned the killings believing he would get away with them. But when Goncalves exposed his failures in front of the courtroom, it likely struck at the core of his self-image.
‘He never imagined his so-called ingenious plan would unravel,’ Vic said. ‘The biggest blow to his ego is realizing that the ideas he thought were brilliant are actually seen as stupid.’
She explained that an inflated sense of self is part of being a psychopath, but Goncalves’s statement ‘eroded that.’
A self-proclaimed psychopath claimed Bryan Kohberger exhibits traits of the disorder and revealed a blistering moment for him during his sentencing hearing for the murder of four Idaho college students
Left to right: Dylan Mortensen, Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen (on Kaylee’s shoulders) Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle and Bethany Funke. This is the last known photo ever taken of the group of friends before the murders
Psychopathy is characterized by a constellation of traits including superficial charm, manipulation, lack of empathy and a disregard for others’ rights and well-being.
While psychopathy is not a formal diagnosis, clinicians and forensic psychologists use assessment tools like the Psychopathy Checklist-Revised (PCL-R) to identify and evaluate these traits.
The PCL-R is a 20-item checklist that assesses characteristics like those listed above, and a score of 30 or higher typically indicates psychopathy.
Kohberger has not been officially diagnosed with the disorder, but his lawyer claimed he has autism, OCD and a developmental coordination disorder.
Goncalves delivered a searing statement on Wednesday, insisting Kohberger explain himself and tearing him down as a ‘loser.’
She demanded he ‘sit up straight’ while she spoke and called him a ‘delusional, pathetic, hypochondriac.’
‘The truth about Kaylee and Maddie is that they would have been kind to you…. In a world that rejected you, they would have shown mercy,’ Alivea said.
Kohberger watched Goncalves intently, showing no emotion or flicker of expression.
The self-proclaimed psychopath said it was Alivea Goncalves’s (pictured) blistering speech about the murder of her younger sister Kaylee that pierced Kohberger’s emotional armor
Goncalves continued in her scathing remarks to Kohberger: ‘I wont stand here and give you what you want, I won’t give you tears… instead I will call you what you are: sociopath, psychopath, murderer.’
She went on to blast Kohberger’s past and all his failings, saying: ‘You thought you were so much better than everyone else.’
‘The truth is you’re basic,’ she continued. ‘You’re a textbook case as insecurity disguised as control. You spent months preparing and still all it took was my sister and a sheath. You’re as dumb as they come. Stupid, dumb… weak, dirty.’
In the TikTok video, Vic pointed to several lines in Goncalves’s speech that she believes hit Kohberger the hardest, including: ‘No one is impressed by you. No one thinks you’re important.’
‘That’s word-for-word what he doesn’t want to believe about himself,’ Vic added. ‘It attacks his deepest insecurity.’
Vic argued that Kohberger meticulously plotted the killings, believing he would never be caught, but when Goncalves publicly dismantled that belief, highlighting all the ways he had failed, it likely struck at the core of his self-image.
Kohberger was was handed four life sentences on Wednesday, for each life he took on November 13, 2022.
One for Madison Mogen, 21, Kaylee, 21, and Xana Kernodle, 20, as well as Kernodle’s boyfriend, Ethan Chapin, 20. They were all found stabbed to death.
A plea deal struck earlier this month saw Kohberger spared the death penalty, but he will never be able to apply for parole.
Earlier in Wednesday’s sentencing, Kohberger was asked if he’d like to address the court, with the criminology student’s motive still a mystery.
‘I respectfully decline,’ he said in a frighteningly forceful voice.
