section_path: Perpetrator
section_name: Perpetrator
paragraph_text: Perpetrator
  
  The perpetrator was identified as José Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan man who had entered the United States illegally via the United States-Mexico border near El Paso, Texas in September 2022, where he was apprehended by federal authorities but later released into the country. Ibarra initially stayed at the Roosevelt Hotel migrant shelter in New York before boarding a flight to Georgia, where his brother lived. UGA police stated that he lived in an apartment complex about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the woodland area where Riley's body was found.
  
  Ibarra had been previously arrested by both federal and state officials in multiple jurisdictions; in September 2023, Ibarra was arrested in New York City on charges of "acting in a manner to injure a child less than 17 and a motor vehicle license violation" for driving a scooter without a license with a child who was not wearing a helmet. In October 2023, José and his brother - a temporary worker at UGA and reported member of the Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua - were arrested by Athens police on charges of theft for reportedly possessing stolen merchandise from a local Walmart, then later released. José Ibarra was later subject to a bench warrant, issued in December 2023, after he failed to appear in court for the Georgia shoplifting case. ICE stated they had missed the opportunity to issue a detainer for Ibarra before he was released by New York officials following his arrest in New York for the suspected murder of Riley.
  
  Ibarra was questioned by police after Riley's hair was found on a jacket in a dumpster near his apartment. Ibarra's roommate identified him after police obtained surveillance footage of a man disposing the jacket in the dumpster. During questioning, police noted that Ibarra's knuckles were red and he had scratches on his arms. Ibarra was subsequently arrested on murder charges.
  
  The perpetrator was identified as José Antonio Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan man who had entered the United States illegally via the United States-Mexico border near El Paso, Texas in September 2022, where he was apprehended by federal authorities but later released into the country. Ibarra initially stayed at the Roosevelt Hotel migrant shelter in New York before boarding a flight to Georgia, where his brother lived. UGA police stated that he lived in an apartment complex about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the woodland area where Riley's body was found.
  
  Ibarra had been previously arrested by both federal and state officials in multiple jurisdictions; in September 2023, Ibarra was arrested in New York City on charges of "acting in a manner to injure a child less than 17 and a motor vehicle license violation" for driving a scooter without a license with a child who was not wearing a helmet. In October 2023, José and his brother - a temporary worker at UGA and reported member of the Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua - were arrested by Athens police on charges of theft for reportedly possessing stolen merchandise from a local Walmart, then later released. José Ibarra was later subject to a bench warrant, issued in December 2023, after he failed to appear in court for the Georgia shoplifting case. ICE stated they had missed the opportunity to issue a detainer for Ibarra before he was released by New York officials following his arrest in New York for the suspected murder of Riley.
  
  Ibarra was questioned by police after Riley's hair was found on a jacket in a dumpster near his apartment. Ibarra's roommate identified him after police obtained surveillance footage of a man disposing the jacket in the dumpster. During questioning, police noted that Ibarra's knuckles were red and he had scratches on his arms. Ibarra was subsequently arrested on murder charges.