Laken Riley case: Georgia authorities identify murder suspect in custody in nursing student's slaying
Laken Riley found dead after concerned friend told UGA police she didn't come home from morning jog
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The University of Georgia Police Department have taken a suspect in custody in connection with the suspected homicide of a 22-year-old nursing student from Augusta University who police found dead on the University of Georgia campus Thursday.
Police have charged Jose Antonio Ibarra with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another, UGA Police Chief Jeffrey L. Clark said during a news briefing Friday evening. The suspect is not a U.S. citizen, according to authorities.
Ibarra measures 5 foot 3 inches and weighs 170 lbs, per the Clarke County Sheriff’s Department booking sheet. Laken measured 5 feet 4 inches, weighing 115 lbs, according to a UGA Police Department report.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Jose Ibarra, who was originally taken into custody on Friday by the UGA Police Department in connection with Riley's death, is now not believed to have had a connection to the victim. (Clarke County Sheriff's Office)
"The evidence is robust," he told reporters, crediting campus security cameras in part for the arrest.
Clark said he believed the attack was a "crime of opportunity" and that the suspected killer had no known connection to the victim. Ibarra is not a UGA student, he added.
UNIVERSITY OF GEORGIA POLICE QUESTIONING ‘PERSON OF INTEREST’ IN LAKEN RILEY HOMICIDE
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Laken Riley smiles for a photo while running. Riley, a nursing student at the University of Georgia, was found dead near a lake on campus on Thursday, February 22, 2024, after she failed to return from her morning jog. (Laken Riley/Instagram)
Ibarra's immigration status was not immediately known to investigators, the chief said, adding that he believed the suspect is from Venezuela.
"Right now I don’t know his full status," he said. "He is not a citizen of the United States."
Police initially swept up three to four people during the early stages of the investigation but were only arresting and charging Ibarra, Clark added.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Police have charged Jose Antonio Ibarra with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another, UGA Police Chief Jeffrey L. Clark said (Fox News Digital)
"While the perpetrator’s legal status is unclear, if the Chief’s statement is accurate and that he is a Venezuelan migrant — potentially admitted under the continuing ‘special status’ program — it is past time to recognize the obvious: Maduro has taken a page from Castro’s book and is emptying his criminals into the U.S., and we are holding the door open for them," Paul Mauro, a retired NYPD inspector, told Fox News Digital.
Furthermore, as the repatriation flights have predictably been suspended by the Maduro regime — there is no mechanism to return even those we wish to deport.
Riley had previously attended UGA before entering a nursing program at Augusta's Athens campus, where she made the Dean's List.
Laken Riley poses for a photo posted to Facebook. Riley, a nursing student at the University of Georgia, was found dead near a lake on campus on Thursday, February 22, 2024. (Laken Riley/Facebook)
Police were asking anyone who saw anything "relevant or suspicious" between 7 a.m. and noon Thursday around UGA's Intramural Fields and Lake Herrick to call 706-542-2200.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}That's where they found Riley – with "visible injuries" – within 30 after they received a call from a concerned friend who said she went for a run and didn't come back.
According to an incident report obtained by Fox News Digital, multiple officers began searching for Riley near the Intramural Fields around 12:07 p.m. At 12:38, a UGA police officer spotted her on the ground.
"I called out to Riley, and I did not get a response," the officer wrote.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Read the incident report:
She had visible injuries, and police could not locate a pulse. They began CPR anyway. A sergeant arrived with a defibrillator minutes later and unsuccessfully attempted to revive the victim.
"Based on the injuries and Riley's physical condition, I suspected that foul play was involved," the police report reads. Investigators were reviewing the officer's bodycam for additional evidence.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Flowers under the sign at Lake Herrick, where Georgia nursing student Laken Riley was found dead Thursday after failing to return home from her morning run. (Audrey Conklin/Fox News Digital)
GEORGIA NURSING STUDENT FOUND DEAD ON UGA CAMPUS IDENTIFIED AS LAKEN RILEY
Laken Riley poses for a photo posted to Facebook. Riley, a nursing student at the University of Georgia, was found dead near a lake on campus on Thursday, February 22, 2024. (Allyson Phillips/Facebook)
Autopsy results remained pending Friday, but authorities said they were investigating her death as a homicide. Clark said it appeared as though she had been killed by blunt-force trauma.
Classes and events at both universities were canceled Friday.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Laken Riley poses for a photo posted to Facebook. Riley, a nursing student at the University of Georgia, was found dead near a lake on campus on Thursday, February 22, 2024. (Laken Riley/Facebook)
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Lake Herrick is part of UGA's campus, nestled between various university practice fields and Oconee Forest Park. The lake is bordered by a pedestrian trail and has a recreational beach. Authorities are asking the public to avoid the area as they investigate.
The last time UGA reported a homicide on campus was 20 years ago, UGA Police Chief Jeffrey Clark said during a Thursday evening news conference. The police chief said that there was not "immediate danger" on campus.