An undocumented immigrant has been found guilty of murdering nursing student Laken Riley in a case that became a flashpoint in the 2024 presidential election.
Jose Antonio Ibarra, a Venezuelan, killed the 22-year-old on 22 February this year after going “hunting for females” on the University of Georgia (UGA) campus, the week-long trial heard.
Ibarra’s lawyers had argued that evidence linking him to Ms Riley’s death was “circumstantial”.
Ms Riley’s parents, roommates and other friends and family cried as the verdict was read, while Ibarra did not visibly react.
Ms Riley, who lived in the city of Athens, north-east Georgia, was found dead in a wooded area of the UGA campus after she did not return from her morning run.
Ibarra was arrested a day later.
On Wednesday, he was found guilty of all 10 counts, including felony murder, kidnapping with bodily injury and aggravated assault with intent to rape.
Ibarra had waived his right to a jury trial, which means his case was heard and decided by a county judge, H Patrick Haggard.
He is expected to be sentenced later on Wednesday.
Prosecutors are seeking a life sentence without parole. Prosecutors told the court Ibarra saw Riley while she was running on the UGA campus and “bashed her skull in with a rock”.
Data from Ms Riley’s smartwatch showed she had “fought for her life, fought for her dignity” only minutes after departing on her run, the trial heard.
The victim’s struggle was “fierce”, the lead prosecutor said. Ms Riley called police at 09:11 that morning and her heart stopped at 09:28, with no more movement from her device.
In their closing arguments, prosecutors outlined how evidence showed that Ibarra’s DNA was found under the nails of Ms Riley, indicating that a struggled had ensued between them.
Ibarra’s lawyers, on the other hand, argued that the evidence presented should leave the judge “with some reasonable doubt”.
Ibarra’s defence attorney, Dustin Kirby, conceded during his opening statement that “the evidence in this case is very good that Laken Riley was murdered”, but he said proof connecting his client to Ms Riley’s death was “lacking”.
The trial, which began on Friday, included testimony from more than a dozen law enforcement officers, Ms Riley’s former roommate and a woman who lived in the same apartment as Ibarra.
Ms Riley’s name became a rallying cry for conservatives as border security emerged as a defining issue in the White House race.
In March, President Joe Biden, a Democrat, was heckled over Ms Riley’s murder during his State of the Union address.
Republican lawmakers blamed the Biden-Harris administration for Ms Riley’s death. They said it was the fault of the White House that Ibarra, who entered the US unlawfully in 2022, was able to remain in the country despite his criminal record.
President-elect Donald Trump, a Republican, often invoked Ms Riley’s name on the campaign trail.
Trump reacted to Ibarra’s guilty verdict, writing on Truth Social that he hopes the outcome of the trial “can bring some peace and closure to her wonderful family who fought for justice”.
“It is time to secure our border,” Trump added.
A National Institute of Justice study suggests that undocumented migrants in the US are arrested for violent and drug crimes at less than half the rate of native-born citizens.
