Idaho murders victim’s sister names baby after her murdered sibling and best friend

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The baby niece of Idaho victim Kaylee Goncalves has been named after the murdered student and her best friend, Madison Mogen.

Theodora MaddieKay Stevenson was born on Friday to Goncalves’ older sister, Alivea, who had asked both victims to be bridesmaids at her wedding. The family announced the birth and name on Facebook.

“Theodora #MaddieKay Stevenson arrived at 4:21a.m. 6lbs 5.8oz 19 inches,” The Goncalves Family Page posted. “Alivea and Robbie are doing great! We are blessed.”

Kaylee and Maddie, both 21, were murdered in the early hours of 13 November at an off-campus house near the University of Idaho along with fellow students Ethan Chapin, 20, and Xana Kernodle, 20.

A former criminology graduate student at nearby Washington State University, 28-year-old Bryan Kohberger, has been charged in all four deaths.

He was arrested in his native Pennsylvania in December, extradited back to Idaho and will next appear in court in June.

Following the murders – during the weeks when no suspect had yet been publicly named – Alivea Goncalves mourned her “baby sisters” online.

“I promise to always make you proud, take the picture, and never stop fighting to find out the truth and make right whatever I can in this f****d up world,” she posted in November. “You guys aren’t gone. You never could be. I’ll find you always and everywhere. If you ever get tired of seeing the world, come rest in my heart. It’s forever open to you guys. I’ll keep you warm and keep you safe there.

“Right now, I’m mad,” she wrote.

Fans of the Goncalves family page shared warm congratulations after the birth news was posted alongside photos of relatives posing with the new addition.

“Congratulations ... Your family deserves as much joy as possible,” wrote one Facebook user. “I love the homage to Maddie and Kaylee.”