Venezuelan found guilty of murder of young university student in Georgia

Jose Ibarra listens through an interpreter during his trial in Athens-Clarke County Superior Court, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024, in Athens, Georgia.

Venezuelan José Ibarra was charged with murder and other crimes in the death of Laken Riley, a nursing student at Augusta University, Georgia, in a case that shocked the United States and fueled the debate over immigration.

A Venezuelan man has been convicted of murder in the death of a nursing student in Georgia, a case that fueled the national debate on immigration during this year's presidential race.

Jose Ibarra was charged with murder and other crimes in the death of Laken Riley in February, and the guilty verdict was reached Wednesday by Judge H. Patrick Haggard of Athens-Clarke County Superior Court. Ibarra, 26, had waived his right to a jury trial, meaning Haggard alone heard and decided the case.

Riley's family and roommates cried as the verdict was read. Ibarra did not visibly react.

The killing added fuel to the national debate over immigration as federal authorities said Ibarra entered the United States illegally in 2022 and was allowed to remain in the country while his immigration case pursued.

The trial began Friday, with prosecutors calling more than a dozen law enforcement officers, Riley's roommates and a woman who lived in the same apartment as Ibarra. Defense attorneys called a police officer, a jogger and one of Ibarra's neighbors on Tuesday and closed their case Wednesday morning.

Prosecutor Sheila Ross told the judge that Ibarra encountered Riley while she was jogging on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22 and killed her during a struggle. Riley, 22, was a nursing student at Augusta University, which also has a campus in Athens about 70 miles (115 kilometers) east of Atlanta.

Defense attorney Dustin Kirby said in his opening statement that Riley's death was a tragedy and called the evidence in the case graphic and disturbing. But he said there was not enough evidence to prove his client killed Riley.

Riley's parents, roommates and other friends and family filled the courtroom throughout the trial.