Suspect Arrested After Ga. College Student Who Went on Jog Was Found Dead

A suspect was arrested on Friday in connection with the death of a college student who vanished Thursday while jogging on the University of Georgia campus in Athens, authorities announced.

“A suspect in the murder of Laken Riley has been taken into custody by the University of Georgia Police Department,” university police said in a statement. “At this time, there are no indications of a continuing threat to the UGA campus related to this matter.”

Police later identified the suspect as Jose Antonio Ibarra, reports local outlets WGAU and WSB-TV. He is expected to be charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another, the outlets report.

UGA police said Ibarra is not a U.S. citizen or a student at the university. He did not know Riley and police believe he acted alone, they said.
Riley died of blunt force trauma, WSB-TV, Fox 5 Atlanta and ABC 30 report.

University of Georgia Police Department Chief Jeffrey Clark called the killing a “crime of opportunity,” per ABC 30.

Laken Hope Riley, 22, was “unconscious and not breathing, and had visible injuries” when police officers discovered her body in the woods behind Lake Herrick at about 12:38 p.m. on Thursday, according to a statement from the UGA Police Department.

Riley, whose identity was confirmed to PEOPLE on Friday by Athens-Clarke County Coroner Sonny Wilson, was pronounced dead at the scene by medical workers, police said.

She was reported missing by a friend around 12:07 p.m. after failing to return home from a jog at the UGA Intramural Fields that morning, according to police.
“We have been fully briefed on this terrible situation,” UGA said a statement shared on Thursday. “Foul play is suspected, and we are already receiving support from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Athens-Clarke County Police Department to investigate this crime. We want to assure you that the safety and welfare of our campus community is our top concern.”

Park Hall on the University of Georgia campus. JOHN GREIM/LIGHTROCKET/GETTY

Riley was a nursing student at Augusta University, also located in the city of Athens, school officials confirmed in a statement posted to Facebook on Friday.

“We have learned this morning that authorities in Athens have confirmed the identity of our College of Nursing student who passed away Thursday,” the statement read. “We extend our deepest sympathies to the family of Laken Riley, a junior and Dean’s List student who studied at our campus in Athens.”

“This sudden loss of one of our students is truly heartbreaking. Please keep Laken’s family, friends and fellow nursing students in your thoughts and prayers,” the statement concluded.

Riley’s death comes one day after a student died by suicide on the UGA campus. UGA Police Chief Jeff Clark confirmed at a Thursday press conference that the two deaths are not related, according to Fox 5 Atlanta.

Classes were canceled Friday at both UGA and Augusta University’s College of Nursing, CNN reported.

Anyone with information related to the case is asked to contact the UGA Police Department at 706-542-2200.