Suspect Is Arrested in Killing of Woman on U. of Georgia Campus

A 26-year-old man was charged on Friday with kidnapping and murdering a nursing student whose body was found in a wooded area at the University of Georgia in Athens the previous day, the authorities announced. They called the homicide, the first in nearly 30 years on campus, “a crime of opportunity” and said that the two apparently had not known each other.

The victim, Laken Riley, 22, was an undergraduate student at the school until the spring of 2023 and then enrolled at Augusta University’s nursing program, which has a campus in Athens, school officials said. She was on Augusta University’s fall 2023 dean’s list.

University police identified the suspect as Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, at an evening news conference.

Calling it a “heartbreaking time for the university,” Jeffrey Clark, the chief of university police, said that “video footage from our campus security cameras networks” helped lead to the arrest. The charges against Mr. Ibarra include murder, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another, the chief said.

He said that while Mr. Ibarra lives in Athens, he is not a citizen of the United States.

Asked about the motive for the killing, Chief Clark said, “This was just a crime of opportunity.” Later he said, “This was an individual who woke up with bad intentions.”

When asked how Ms. Riley was killed, the chief said “blunt force trauma.”

The chief did not give details about how the crime unfolded, saying that the investigation was continuing. He said that while a number of people were initially taken into custody, Mr. Ibarra had acted alone and was the only one charged.

“There are no indications of a continuing threat to the community related to this case at this time,” Chief Clark said.