This Terrifying True-Crime Series Hit #1 on Netflix Days After the Convicted Killer Took Back His Confession

Imagine this: A student stumbles home in the wee hours after a night out with friends. One of her roommates is home and sees a shadowy figure haunting the halls. There's a commotion, but nothing sounds out of the ordinary. By morning, she and three friends are found, stabbed to death in what will be labeled a quadruple homicide. This is the first homicide case in seven years to hit her quaint college town. The killer is on the loose for weeks, captivating the country.

What sounds like the trappings of a Stephen King novel is very much real, and currently the subject of the number one hit currently on Netflix. The Idaho Murders: College Nightmare is captivating viewers all over again—four years after the initial case broke, and on the heels of a shocking request by the convicted perpetrator.

The Idaho Murders seeks to unpack the shocking events that lead to the deaths of University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin. The four had returned to their college apartment after a night out, and were later found stabbed to death the following morning. Bryan Kohberger, a criminology student not affiliated with the university, was convicted after a weeks-long manhunt.

The documentary's meteoric rise comes at the same time that Kohberger has announced his intention to rescind his guilty plea. In a statement shared with the New York Times, he said, "My actual innocence is my truth, and the plea, hinged on by false promises and blatant disinformation, MUST be withdrawn."

The 28-year-old is currently serving four life sentences at the Idaho Maximum Security Institution. If Kohberger is successful, his case will go to trial.