Fox’s first appearance – A Georgia grand jury on Tuesday indicted Jose Ybarra, the suspect in the murder of Augusta University student Laken Riley, on 10 counts, court documents show.
Ibarra, 26, an illegal immigrant from Venezuela, is accused of killing nursing student Riley, 22, while running on a dirt path on the University of Georgia campus in Athens on February 22. .
A grand jury indicted Ybarra on charges of malicious murder, two counts of kidnapping with injury, two counts of aggravated assault with intent to commit rape, two counts of aggravated assault, interfering with or obstructing a 911 call, tampering with evidence, and tampering with evidence. Being a “peeping tom”.
The indictment alleges that Ybarra inflicted blunt force trauma on Riley’s head and “asphyxiated her to death in a manner unknown to the jury.”
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On the same day he allegedly killed Riley, the suspect is also suspected of going to an apartment in UGA’s University Village Housing Building S, “peeking” through a window, and “peeping” at university employees. It is. claims.
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Ybarra lives in an apartment on the edge of the campus park where Riley ran, and the murder, which UGA Police Chief Jeffrey Clark described as a “crime of opportunity,” killed Riley, an aspiring nurse. is said to have killed.
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Laken Riley poses for a photo to post on Facebook. Riley, a nursing student at the University of Georgia, was found dead near a lake on campus on Thursday, February 22, 2024. (Alison Phillips/Facebook)
The scenic loop Riley ran that morning is easily accessible from behind Ybarra’s apartment. It is a five-minute walk from the front door of Ibarra’s home to the approximate location where Riley’s body was found.
UGA released a statement in February following Riley’s death, saying the school was “hiring more police officers, installing more security cameras, increasing lighting, and implementing a nighttime rideshare program.” He said he has invested $16 million over the past eight years to establish and create the UGASafe app.
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Diego Ybarra will appear in federal court on immigration charges on Thursday, March 8, 2024, in Macon, Georgia. Ybarra is the younger brother of Jose Ybarra, who was charged with killing UGA student Lake Riley in Athens, Georgia, last month. (Lucy Lukovic)
“But we are committed to doing more,” UGA said, “also approving additional steps to improve lighting and installing surveillance cameras” and “continue to evaluate” safety measures. added.
The 26-year-old suspect entered the United States illegally. El Paso, Texas They will be released on parole to the United States in September 2022, ICE and DHS officials previously told Fox News.
Laken Riley’s murder suspect lived within a 5-minute walk of the Uga crime scene.
Brothers Jose Ibarra (right), Diego Ibarra (left), and Argenis Ibarra illegally entered the United States from Venezuela through Texas. The three brothers lived in an apartment complex near UGA’s campus.
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Jose and his brother Diego Ibarra, 29 years old. and Argenis Ibarra, 24, lived together in the same apartment. All three were questioned and taken into custody after Riley’s murder. Argenis and Diego first entered the United States on April 3, 2023, near Eagle Pass, Texas, and were deported the same day. They were arrested again on April 30 after illegally entering the United States near El Paso, Texas. They were later released and eventually traveled to Athens.
Diego Ibarra is charged with green card fraud and has ties to known Venezuelan gangs in the United States, according to federal court documents.
FOX News’ Bill Melgin contributed to this report.
