Man indicted in death of nursing student Riley
A grand jury indicted the alleged killer of 22-year-old Laken Hope Riley, a nursing student whose body was found in February near running trails in a wooded area on the University of Georgia’s main campus in Athens, according to court records.
The indictment filed in Clarke County Superior Court charges Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, with malice murder and accuses him of killing Riley “by inflicting blunt force trauma to her head and by asphyxiating her in a manner unknown to the Grand Jurors.” The indictment also says Ibarra “disfigured (Riley’s) head by striking her multiple times with a rock.”
Ibarra was charged with 10 counts total, including malice murder, three counts of felony murder, kidnapping with bodily injury, aggravated assault with intent to rape, aggravated battery, obstructing or hindering a person making an emergency telephone call, tampering with evidence and peeping tom, according to the indictment.
The peeping tom charge stems from Ibarra allegedly spying through the window of a different person who lived in an apartment on the campus of the University of Georgia, the indictment says.
USA TODAY contacted Ibarra’s attorneys with the Athens Public Defender’s office but did not receive a response.
The University of Georgia Police investigators said they identified Ibarra, an Athens resident, by looking at video footage from campus security. During a news conference in February, Chief Jeff Clark said Ibarra lived in one of the apartments near campus.
Authorities also believe Ibarra’s actions were a “solo act,” and that he and Riley had no relationship, according to Clark.
“This was a crime of opportunity where he saw an individual and bad things happened,” the chief said.
Ibarra was arrested on Feb. 23 and taken to Clarke County Jail to be held without bond.
Riley, a former Georgia student, was enrolled as a junior at the Augusta University College of Nursing before she went missing on Feb. 22. Riley’s roommate reported her missing when she didn’t return around noon.
When school police officers found Riley, she was unconscious, was not breathing and had “visible injuries.”
Paramedics pronounced her dead on the scene, Clark said.
Ibarra, a Venezuelan citizen, came to the U.S. in 2022. He was detained by authorities who released him pending immigration proceedings.
New York police charged Ibarra in August 2023 with a vehicle license violation and child endangerment, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Ibarra was driving a scooter without a license and had a child with him who didn’t have a helmet on, The New York Times reported, citing a law enforcement official.
New York police released Ibarra before ICE could file a detainer, federal officials said.