Gang Affiliation, Taxpayer-Funded Flights, & More Infuriating

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Yesterday was the third day of the Laken Riley murder trial in Athens, Georgia, and the day on which prosecutors rested their case after calling 25 witnesses to the stand.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the case, Riley was a 22-year-old nursing student who was murdered while jogging on the University of Georgia campus earlier this year. Her alleged murderer, José Antonio Ibarra, is a 26-year-old Venezuelan man who is in the United States illegally. He’s been charged with felony murder, malice murder, false imprisonment, hindering a 911 call, aggravated assault with intent to rape, and kidnapping, among other things. He faces life in jail if convicted. The case has garnered national attention at a time when illegal immigration and criminal migrants are big topics in the United States.

If you haven’t been able to watch any of the trial, I must warn you: It has been, at times, equal parts heartbreaking and infuriating. Full disclosure: I attended the University of Georgia myself and have spent a lot of time on that campus. I’ve never once felt unsafe there, which makes this murder all the more disturbing and upsetting. That said, here are the highlights.

Heartbreaking Last Message to Her Mom

The most gut-wrenching part of the trial came today when Riley’s final moments before meeting her brutal end were shared with the courtroom. First, prosecutors showed surveillance video of Riley jogging minutes before her death. They also had footage of a man in dark clothing, presumably Ibarra, lingering in the area.

But the part that left many people, especially Riley’s family, in tears was when Sargent Sophie Raboud with the UGA police read a text message the young woman sent her mother: “Good morning…about to go for run if you’re free to talk.” She sent the message around 8:55 a.m. A few minutes later, she called, but her mom didn’t answer. At 9:24 a.m., her mother attempted to call her back, but would she never speak to her daughter again.

“You’re making me nervous not answering while you’re out running. Are you OK?” her mother texted back when she couldn’t get in touch with Riley. Over the next couple of hours, her mother and several other family members would continue trying to reach her until her roommate reported her missing around noon.

Ibarra’s Criminal Past and How He Ended Up in Georgia

Ibarra came to the U.S. illegally in September 2022, passing over the border in El Paso, Texas. While he was detained at a processing facility, immigration officials eventually released him, allowing him to stay in the country temporarily until his trial date. He ended up in New York, where he was arrested for a minor crime and released in August 2023. While in New York, Ibarra spent time living with a roommate, Rosbeli Flores-Bello, in a car, and eventually living with Flores-Bello, his wife, and his mother-in-law in housing that had been converted into a shelter for migrants.

During the trial this week, Flores-Bello testified that she accompanied Ibarra to Athens in September of 2023. She claimed that his brother promised he could easily find a job in the area. “In Manhattan, we requested for a humanitarian flight to come here to Atlanta,” Flores-Bello said on Monday. Riley was killed in February 2024.

According to the New York Post, the Roosevelt Hotel in New York has become a “temporary migrant in-take center” to help deal with the migrant crisis happening in the city due to the lax border policies of the Biden administration. It offers a “re-ticketing” program that provides migrants with one-way tickets to other cities throughout the country. The program is paid for with federal taxpayer dollars.

Ibarra’s Shocking Gang Affiliation

Not only was Ibarra in the country illegally, but he is said to be a member of the Venezuelan criminal organization Tren de Aragua, which is on the rise and becoming increasingly violent in the U.S. News Nation correspondent Ali Bradley said on X that Department of Homeland Security sources confirmed this information this week. Earlier this year, we reported that Ibarra’s brother, Diego, has tattoos common with Tren de Aragua gang members. Until this week, however, it was uncertain as to whether Jose Ibarra was also a member.

Riley’s Final Moments and Cause of Death

Riley’s body was found by a UGA police officer around 12:38 p.m. in a wooded area about 65 feet off the trail where she’d gone jogging just a few hours before. However, data from the Garmin watch she was wearing at the time of her death showed that her heart stopped at 9:28, just a little less than half an hour after starting her workout.

According to Michelle DiMarco, the doctor who conducted the autopsy, her official cause of death was “combined effects of blunt force head trauma and asphyxia.” The autopsy also showed that the injuries to her face and skull were severe enough to cause a brain bleed and consistent with those caused by a rock.

Prosecutor Sheila Ross painted a picture of Ibarra lurking on the UGA campus, looking for a woman to rape. “When Laken Riley refused to be his rape victim, he bashed her skull in with a rock repeatedly,” she said. Riley fought back for 20 minutes before succumbing to her injuries. She also attempted to make a 911 call about 17 minutes before her death, but Ibarra stopped her, leaving his fingerprints behind on her phone. The day after the murder, Ibarra was arrested with scratches and cuts all over his body. Evidence collected from under Riley’s fingernails also matched Ibarra’s DNA.