Jose Ibarra: Internet vents out frustration at US government as prime suspect in Lake Riley's death indicted on murder charges

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AUGUSTA, GEORGIA: Jose Ibarra, the prime suspect who was charged in Augusta University student Laken Riley's murder was indicted by a Georgia grand jury on 10 counts on Tuesday, May 7.

The 26-year-old illegal immigrant from Venezuela, reportedly killed Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student while she was out for a run along dirt trails on the University of Georgia campus in Athens on February 22. 

What charges does Jose Ibarra face after getting indicted?

According to the reports of Fox News, the grand jury indicted Ibarra on counts of malice murder, two counts of kidnapping with bodily injury, two counts of aggravated assault with intent to rape, two counts of aggravated battery, obstructing or hindering a person from making a 911 call, tampering with evidence and being a "peeping Tom."

Ibarra is accused of causing Riley's death by inflicting blunt-force trauma to her head and "asphyxiating her in a manner unknown to jurors," the indictment states.

Jose Ibarra is also accused of going to an apartment on the UGA campus before the murder

The suspect is also accused of going to an apartment on UGA's "University Village Housing Building ‘S,'" where he "peeped through" a window and "spied upon" a university staff member on the same day he allegedly killed Riley, the indictment alleges.

Ibarra also lived in an apartment building that sits on the edge of the on-campus park where Riley was running, allegedly murdered the aspiring nurse in what UGA Police Chief Jeffrey Clark described as a "crime of opportunity."

The picturesque loop that Riley ran that morning is easily accessible from behind Ibarra’s apartment complex. It is a five-minute walk from Ibarra’s door to the approximate scene where Riley was found dead.

University of Georgia invested $16 million to hire more police officers following Laken Riley's death

UGA said in a February statement following Riley's death that the school has invested $16 million "over the last eight years to hire more police officers, install more security cameras, enhance lighting, establish a nightly rideshare program, and create a UGASafe app." 

"But we are committed to doing even more," UGA said, adding that it also "approved an additional phase of lighting improvements and security camera installations" and "will continue to evaluate" safety measures.

Jose Ibarra and his wife entered US in 2022

According to the US Department of Homeland Security, Ibarra and his wife entered the United States near El Paso, Texas, in September 2022. After being arrested and released, his wife told the New York Post they were put on a bus and sent to New York.

At that time, immigration attorney Pamela Peynado said Venezuelans had special protective status in the country. “It could be political unrest, it could be a national disaster," she said, adding "but we're basically allowing these individuals to stay here for a temporary amount of time because it's unsafe to send them back to their home country."

Ibarra’s wife told the outlet that he was making food deliveries about a year later when police in Queens, New York, arrested him for endangering her five-year-old son. He who was riding on the back of the moped without a helmet, according to reporting by the outlet.

At that point Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) could have taken Ibarra into custody, but according to a written ICE statement, “he was released by the NYPD before a detainer could be issued.”

Jose Ibarra and his brother were accused of stealing

Ibarra’s brother Diego was living in Athens at the time. It was only about a month after Ibarra’s arrest in New York that he and his brother were accused of stealing from a Walmart in Athens. According to the police report, the two allegedly took bacon, smoked sausage, queso fresco cheese and some clothes. They were given a citation for misdemeanor shoplifting and let go.

“Our officers do not have immediate access to immigration status…. According to ICE’s 287(g) program, the general process of identifying and removing non-citizens with criminal or pending charges arrested by state and local law enforcement agencies is handled during the booking process by the law enforcement agency responsible for the jail," a spokesperson with the Athens-Clarke County Police Department said. 

However, Ibarra’s brother Diego had been arrested the month before on a DUI charge. He is charged with green card fraud and had ties to a known Venezuelan gang in the US, according to federal court documents.

Internet reacts after Jose Ibarra gets indicted 

Internet users have lashed out at the Biden administration due their debatable immigration policies with one X user tweeting, "This is the diversity that democrats want to shove down our throats." Another wrote, "America used to have movies inspiring young people to enter the military. I don't see that anymore. It used to have heroes, symbols of justice, righteousness. Those were destroyed. While other nations keep building their military and flooding the US with illegal migrants." 

"Bottom line… He shouldn’t have been here. No excuses," said a user and one added, "When illegals trespass into the USA, they are stealing from the United states citizens! Health care, education, housing and food resources. The United States government is to support the American citizens first!" 

"But illegals are just here to better themselves free this man says democrats," wrote one. "You guys just don’t understand bidenomics. Ya see, it’s from the inside out and bottom up," tweeted another user. 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.