Laken Riley murder: Jose Ibarra returns to court as officer describes first encounter with suspect
Laken Riley murder suspect Jose Ibarra will return to court Monday for the second day of his trial. Ibarra is accused of attacking and killing Riley on her run on Feb. 22.
Jose Ibarra, the suspect accused of murdering Augusta University student Laken Riley in February while she was on a morning run, is back in court Monday for the second day of his trial.
Security guards escorted Ibarra, who was wearing a striped shirt and black pants with handcuffs around his wrists, into Superior Court Judge Patrick Haggard's courtroom at the Athens-Clarke County courthouse Monday around 7:15 a.m.
Prosecutors say Ibarra, a 26-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela, attacked and killed Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, while she was jogging along trails near Lake Herrick on the University of Georgia campus in Athens the morning of Feb. 22.
The suspect is charged with 10 counts total, including one count of malice murder, three counts of felony murder, one count of kidnapping, one count of aggravated assault with intent to rape, one count of aggravated battery, one count of hindering a 911 call, one count of tampering with evidence and one count of being a "peeping Tom." Ibarra pleaded not guilty to all counts.
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"On Feb. 22, Jose Ibarra put on a black hat, a hoodie-style jacket, and some black kitchen-style disposable gloves, and he went hunting for females on the University of Georgia campus," prosecutor Sheila Ross said in her opening statement Friday.
Ross said Ibarra then encountered Riley on her typical morning run and attacked her.
"When Laken Riley refused to be his rape victim, he bashed her head in with a rock repeatedly," Ross said. "…The evidence will show that Laken fought. She fought for her life. She fought for her dignity. And in that fight, she caused this defendant to leave evidence behind. She also marked her killer for the entire world to see. The forensic evidence that he left behind in this fight is his DNA, and only his DNA."
Between Riley's Garmin watch, a Christmas present she used for running, and her iPhone, investigators were able to determine that she placed a 911 call at 9:11 a.m., just minutes after she left for her run at 9:03. She then fought for her life for 17 minutes until her heart stopped at 9:28 a.m.
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Ibarra and his brothers, also in the United States illegally from Venezuela, lived in an apartment building less than a half mile from the on-campus park where Riley was running.
The defendant's attorney, Dustin Kirby, argued in his opening statement that evidence would not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Ibarra killed Riley. He said it would take "gymnastics" for the prosecution to argue Ibarra killed Riley with what he described as "circumstantial evidence."
"We waived a jury trial in this case, with the hope and trust that despite the nature of this evidence that you could come to a verdict that was not just a way of easing this family's suffering, but it was based on an impartial and honest assessment of the evidence in this case," he said.
"If that happens and the presumption of innocence is respected, there should not be enough evidence to convince you beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Ibarra is guilty of the crimes charged."
The first witness to testify on Monday — the state's 10th witness so far in Ibarra's trial — was UGA PD Sgt. Joshua Epps, who responded to Ibarra's apartment in Athens, where he lived with four other individuals, including his two brothers, on Feb. 23. Epps said police detained and questioned Ibarra's brothers, Diego and Argenis Ibarra, that morning around 8:30 a.m. with Spanish-speaking officers translating. Police-worn bodycam footage was played in court on Monday showing the encounter, partially on mute because the brothers will be testifying in court later this week.
Police questioning that morning began with Diego Ibarra, who was wearing what appeared to be the same black Adidas hat as a suspicious individual who was captured on security camera footage on the day of Riley's murder. The footage shows the individual disposing of an object in dumpster at an apartment complex not far from the crime scene. Police obtained the footage after finding a dark jacket with long, brown hair tangled in its buttons.
Sgt. Epps said the Adidas hat appeared to have dirt on the back of it while Diego wore in on the morning of Feb. 23. Diego also presented a false ID that showed two different birthdates.
At one point during their questioning of Diego, Agrneis walked out of the apartment carrying what appeared to be a five-gallon, white garbage bag. Officers quickly obtained a search warrant for the apartment.
"Well, based on the fact that he was wearing that hat, the time frame that … [UGA PD Sgt.] Tim Johnson encountered him was within 24 hours of the murder," Epps said of their reasoning behind obtaining the search warrant. "He was walking back towards the general direction of campus, which was concerning as well."
Later on in the bodycam video footage, Epps and other officers entered the apartment and found another individual, later identified as Jose Ibarra, sleeping in bed not far from the entrance of the apartment. Officers identified themselves and said "hola" multiple times upon entering the apartment, trying to wake Jose. Eventually, he got up out of bed, and police began questioning him. They also asked to inspect his body for any signs of injury.
"I noticed on his right arm — his bicep — there was a scratch, which I identified as a potential defensive line," Epps testified. "On his left arm, he had a forearm scratch that was very similar, which in my mind, looked like fingernail scratches to me. While he was sitting there speaking to us. I also noticed on his left wrist just below the palm, he had a puncture, maybe half an inch wide. … I could see, like, wet flesh … almost like it was fresh. It wasn't very old."
UGA PD Patrol Cpl. Rafael Sayan, who speaks Spanish, testified Wednesday that while he was inspecting Jose for injuries he noticed a red mark on his head that Jose said was from wearing a hat. Bodycam footage of the interaction was played in court Monday morning.
"I ask him what type of hat, and he motions over to Diego, who's sitting to the right of him, that it's a hat very similar to that one that was on Diego," Sayan testified.
Diego and Argenis, meanwhile, did not appear to have any signs of injury when police inspected them that morning.
On Friday, the court heard from nine of the prosecution's witnesses, including Riley's roommates and several law enforcement officers with different agencies.
Evidence included screenshots of her roommates' phones when they used the Find My Friends app to try to locate Riley when she did not come back from her run; her AirPod they found on the ground when they went out searching for her along her regular running route; police-worn body camera footage; security camera footage; Riley's phone, which had a male's thumbprint on the bottom; and the athletic clothing Riley was wearing when she was attacked.
UGA Police Chief Jeffrey Clark previously described the murder as a "crime of opportunity" during a February press conference.
Ibarra illegally crossed into the United States through El Paso, Texas, in September 2022 and was released into the U.S. via parole, ICE and DHS sources previously told Fox News.
Diego Ibarra, who worked briefly in a UGA cafeteria before his arrest in February, is charged with green card fraud and had ties to a known Venezuelan gang in the U.S., called Tren de Aragua, according to federal court documents.
On Friday afternoon, the defense subpoenaed Diego Ibarra and their younger brother, Argenis Ibarra, to testify during Jose's trial on Wednesday.
ICE previously confirmed to Fox News Digital that Jose Ibarra had been arrested by the New York Police Department a year after he entered the U.S. in August 2023 and was "charged with acting in a manner to injure a child less than 17 and a motor vehicle license violation."
Fox News' Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
