Laken Riley murder trial updates: Mother in tears as daughter’s final texts are read aloud to the court
Jose Ibarra could face life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted in the February killing of 22-year-old Laken Riley
The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US
Laken Riley’s mother broke down in tears as her daughter’s final texts were read in court on Tuesday in the trial of Jose Ibarra, the man accused of killing her earlier this year.
The 22-year-old Georgia nursing student who was killed while out for a run in February texted her mom at 8:55 a.m., “Good morning, about to go for a run if you’re free to talk,” according to testimony from Sophie Raboud of the UGA Police Department.
When her mother called her back at 9:24 a.m., there was no answer.
An FBI agent testified previously that Ibarra’s cellphone location data places him “very close” to Riley at the time of her murder, with the victim’s smartwatch revealing the moment her heart stopped beating.
Prosecutors are expected to rest the case against Ibarra – a Venezuelan native who entered the US illegally – today, with the defense then presenting around half a day of testimony.
If convicted, Ibarra could face life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The murder case became a flashpoint in the national debate over immigration during this year’s presidential campaign.
What we know about Jose Antonio Ibarra, the man on trial for murdering a Georgia student Laken Riley
As her alleged killer goes on trial, how Laken Riley’s brutal murder became a bitterly divisive political issue- Everything we know about the Laken Riley case as murder trial under way
Laken Riley ‘fought for her life’ against killer who was ‘hunting for females’ on day of murder, trial hears
Laken Riley’s mom sobs as photos of ‘fingernail scratches’ are shown in court
Laken Riley’s mom Allyson Phillips sobbed in court on Monday as photos were shown of what appeared to be fingernail scratches on the suspect’s arms.
Video footage showed the moment officers confronted him about the scratches on his arms, but Ibarra did not have an explanation, Cpl. Rafael Sayan testified.
“First he says, ‘I don’t have anything there … there’s nothing there,’” Sayan said over the video. “Then he starts pointing at it again, saying that, ‘Oh, it’s just a scratch.’”
Jose Ibarra had no reaction when told about murder, suspect’s roommate says
Ibarra’s roommate said he had no reaction when he was told about the murder that happened not far from their home.
Flores-Bello told the court that she heard about Laken Riley’s murder from a neighbor on February 22, the day of the killing.
She told Ibarra’s brother Argenis Ibarra about the news and it was shared with the other brothers, but no one reacted to it, she said.
When asked about the surveillance video of Ibarra, she admitted that she thought it was strange that he was throwing away his jacket.
Jose Ibarra’s roommate takes the stand
Jose Ibarra’s roommate Rosbeli Elisber Flores-Bello is now testifying on the stand in his murder case.
She shared an apartment with Jose Ibarra and his brothers in Athens, Georgia at the time of the murder.
She recalled identifyingIbarra in surveillance video to officers when she was questioned on February 23.
Jose Ibarra and brothers appeared to be laughing when police talked to them day after murder
Jose Ibarra and his brothers appeared to be laughing when police responded to his apartment the day after Laken Riley was killed, Cpl. Rafael Sayan, a UGA police officer, testified on Monday.
“There was a lot of laughing, giggling – especially when they were talking about how they were woken up, pulled out of the apartment,” Sayan said.
“I would say the vibe or the atmosphere was very relaxed and calm.”
Crime scene specialist reveals what was found at murder suspect’s home
Annie Moorman, a crime scene specialist with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, testified in court on Monday about what investigators found when they searched Jose Ibarra’s apartment the day after Laken Riley’s murder.
She said they collected electronic devices and kitchen gloves, which were “restaurant-style.”
Moorman added that this was important to the investigation because “earlier in the day, officers had located gloves that had been described as looking sort of like these from a bush at the apartment complex.”
No blood was found in the apartment.
ICYMI: Defense says there is not sufficient evidence against Ibarra
Defense attorney Dustin Kirby said in his opening statements on Friday that Laken Riley’s death was a tragedy and called the evidence in the case graphic and disturbing.
But he said there is not sufficient evidence to prove that his client killed Riley.
He said prosecutors are relying on conflicting methods to link DNA and fingerprints to Ibarra. And then questioned how Ibarra’s fingerprints could be on the phone if he was supposedly wearing gloves.
“The evidence in this case is very good that Laken Riley was murdered,” Kirby said. “The evidence that Jose Ibarra killed Laken Riley is circumstantial.”
ICYMI: Prosecutor says suspect was out ‘hunting for female’ on day of Laken Riley’s murder
During opening statements on Friday, Prosecutor Sheila Ross said Ibarra had been “hunting” for women on the day of the murder but when he came across Riley she “fought” back.
When she “refused to be a rape victim, he bashed her skull in with a rock repeatedly.”
“The evidence will show that Laken fought,” she said. “She fought for her life, she fought for her dignity. And in that fight she caused this defendant to leave forensic evidence behind.”
Riley’s mother sobbed in court during the proceedings.
Suspect could not explain scratches on arms
Jose Ibarra did not have an explanation for the scratches on his arms, according to Cpl. Rafael Sayan, who testified in court Monday.
Sayan questioned the suspect after the first officer was unable to do so because of the language barrier.
In the body cam footage played in court, Ibarra can be seen pointing to his arms and wrist while speaking to the officer.
“First he says, ‘I don’t have anything there … there’s nothing there,’” Sayan said over the video. “Then he starts pointing at it again, saying that, ‘Oh, it’s just a scratch.’”
Sayan told the court that the scratch looked fresh as it appeared to be moist with bodily fluid, and that “it didn’t look very old.”
Bodycam footage shows moment officer sees what “looked like fingernail scratches” on suspect
The first witness on Monday was a University of Georgia Police officer Sgt. Joshua Epps, who testified seeing injuries on Ibarra when he responded to the suspect’s home.
“While speaking to him, I noticed on his right arm, his bicep, there was a scratch,” he told the court. “On his left arm, he had a forearm scratch that was very similar – which in my mind, looked like fingernail scratches to me.”
“I also noticed on his left wrist, just below the palm, he had a puncture – maybe half an inch wide – that, through my experiences playing sports in high school, and receiving the same injury from fingernails in football, I could see, like, wet flesh, like almost like it was fresh. It wasn’t very old,” Epps said.
How Laken Riley’s brutal murder became a divisive political issue
Laken Riley’s murder became a rallying cry for Republicans, an avoidable tragedy that they say encompasses the Biden administration’s handling of the U.S-Mexico border amid a record surge of immigrants entering the country.
Jose Ibarra, an immigrant from Venezuela who entered the United States illegally at El Paso in September 2022, is charged with murder and other crimes for the February slaying.
Immigration was already a major issue in the presidential campaign, and Republicans seized on Riley’s killing, with now-president-elect Donald Trump blaming Democratic President Joe Biden’s border policies for her death.
Republicans used Ibarra’s status to exemplify the ongoing issue at the southern border and touted Riley’s brutal killing as a way to bolster their anti-migrant agenda.
Read more:
How Laken Riley’s brutal murder became a bitterly divisive political issue
Republicans seized on the fact that an immigrant who entered the US illegally is the suspect in the murder of the Georgia nursing student