Conservatives on Sunday accused the Associated Press of seeming to categorize Laken Riley’s murder as a “solo female athlete scare” rather than illegal immigration or weak crime laws.
Riley, a nursing student at Augusta University, was found dead Thursday after attending the University of Georgia and then entering the nursing program at Augusta’s Athens campus, where she was placed on the dean’s list.
Police charged Jose Antonio Ibarra with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, interfering with a 911 call, and concealing the death of another person. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) also confirmed by Sunday that Ybarra entered the United States illegally in 2022 and had previously been arrested in New York City.
Jose Ybarra, the University of Georgia murder suspect who is accused of killing 22-year-old nursing student Laken Riley on February 22, entered the country illegally. (Mark Sims for Fox News Digital/Laken Riley/Jose Ibarra)
However, the Associated Press Article published He did not discuss Ybarra’s immigration or criminal history in Saturday’s murder, instead focusing on how Riley was killed while jogging alone.
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“Riley’s death has once again put a spotlight on the dangers faced by female runners. We previously shared stories of harassment and stalking following the death of University of Iowa student Molly Tibbetts while jogging in 2018. “This sparked intense criticism from other women,” the article said. read.
Some social media users focused solely on the “female runner,” ignoring that Tibbetts was killed by an illegal immigrant and that there was another suspect in Riley’s murder, and labeled Ybarra as an “Athens resident.” This view was criticized, saying that the A separate Associated Press report on Saturday said police did not yet know the suspect’s immigration status, but that information had not been updated as of Sunday night.
“That’s certainly not the lesson of this,” said Spectator contributing editor Stephen Miller.
In a lengthy post, Outkick columnist Mary Kathryn Hamm wrote, “Hello, female athlete. I ran this same trail every week during my college career. I graduated, had a career, started a family, and then went on to become an Associated Press… experts will lie about a suspect because it fits a preferred narrative.”
The Associated Press did not discuss Ybarra’s immigration status. (Clark County Sheriff’s Office)
She went on to say, “Ibarra is not just an ‘Athenian resident,’ and for not enforcing the law and allowing a man who has been arrested three times for crossing the border to hang out and work on campus. Laken Riley and all the other students were at risk. He had to do it.” The charge could escalate to murder and risk being detained or deported. That’s good policy. Good job. The article goes so far as to cite the 2018 murder of Molly Tibbetts in Iowa as a reason why solo female runners should be concerned, but also notes that her killer was acting illegally. I’m not an immigrant. * Stop lying! ”
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“It’s truly amazing how hard the media will try to avoid coverage that makes their political party or progressive ideology look bad,” wrote fellow Outkick writer Ian Miller. There is.
RealClearPolitics co-founder Tom Bevan posted: “This is just crazy. The media never disappoints.”
“The answer is to disarm them and let in more illegal alien criminals,” Townhall.com columnist Kurt Schlichter wrote.
“We have arrested an ‘Athens resident’ (an illegal alien from Venezuela who was illegally released by Mr. Biden),” Texas Republican Rep. Chip Roy said. But certainly, now the Associated Press is concerned about this outdated concept of “woman.” ”
“By tomorrow, the Associated Press will be linking this to climate change,” Twitch’s Doug Powers joked.
Laken Riley poses for a photo to post on Facebook. (Alison Phillips/Facebook)
Fox News Digital has contacted The Associated Press for comment.
In a statement to FOX News Digital, ICE said Ybarra was encountered by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) after entering the El Paso area on September 8, 2022, and was “released on parole for further processing.” acknowledged.
ICE also confirmed that Ybarra was arrested by the New York City Police Department a year later, on September 14, 2023, and “charged with conduct with injury to a child under 17 years of age and motor vehicle license violation.” .
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Fox News’ Adam Shaw and Stepheny Price contributed to this report.
