A trial opens in Georgia against illegal immigrants accused of killing students

Nov. 15 (UPI) — A trial for murdered student Laken Riley, allegedly killed by an undocumented immigrant, began Friday in Athens, Georgia, with the playing of a graphic video showing when her body was discovered.

Riley, 22, a student at Augusta University, was killed in February. Her body was found in a wooded area from the nearby campus of the University of Georgia in Athens.

Jose Ibarra, a Venezuelan resident who entered the country illegally, did so pleaded not guilty to ten charges, including murder with intent, three charges of murder, kidnapping with bodily harm and aggravated assault with intent to rape.

The allegations against Ibarra became highly politicized during this year’s presidential campaign when newly elected President Donald Trump marked the case in the attack on President Joe Biden’s handling of the southern US border, as Democrats accused Trump of exploiting a tragedy for political gain.

Riley’s murder also led to several new state laws that cracked down on illegal immigration a measure in Georgia requires local sheriffs to verify the immigration status of anyone over the age of 18 who has been arrested, detained, or even suspected of committing a crime.

On Friday, prosecutors presented their first pieces of evidence against Ibarra, including dramatic video footage captured by the officer’s bodycam that discovered Riley’s body near a campus walking path, Sgt. Kenneth Maxwell of the Athens-Clarke County Police Department.

Amid audible shouts and shouts coming from those present in the courtroom, the video shown Maxwell performs CPR on the student’s body and calls for the University of Georgia campus police to set up a perimeter around the crime scene.

Prosecutors also played audio of a 911 emergency call Riley placed around the time she was killed, as well as another from a female UGA student in connection with allegations that Ibarra had also tried to break into a student complex prior to the murder .

During their opening statements, prosecutors outlined the timeline of Riley’s death.

They said her roommates went looking for her after she didn’t come home from jogging and, after finding her AirPods along the way, called the police and reported her missing.

Police used “pings” from Riley’s cell phone to find her body under a tree covered in leaves, about 20 yards away from a running trail in the woods. Nearby, rocks were covered in her blood. Her phone was then found, reportedly marked with Ibarra’s left fingerprint.

The victim’s Apple Watch showed she called 911 after she stopped running, and while Riley’s voice cannot be heard on the audio, experts said improvements show a man’s voice can be heard on the digital recording.