The brother of the illegal immigrant arrested in connection with the killing of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley has been taken into custody for possessing a fake green card — which he used to get a job on the campus where her body was found, The Post learned Saturday evening.
Diego Ibarra, 29, was charged after he was stopped by police in connection with the ongoing murder investigation, the US Attorney for the Middle District of Georgia said.
He is now in state custody, jail records show.
Social media accounts that appear to be linked to Ibarra show him wearing a badge and T-shirt from the University of Georgia, where Riley’s body was located after she failed to return from a run Thursday morning, and video of him washing dishes in a large kitchen.
“Diego Ibarra presented a fake green card to the hiring unit to begin a temporary position as a dishwasher in Bolton Dining Hall at the University of Georgia on Feb. 6, 2024,” UGA spokesperson Greg Trevor told The Post Saturday evening.
“He subsequently failed to submit further documentation required to keep the job and was never paid by the University. He has been fired.”
Diego’s younger brother, 26-year-old Jose Antonio Ibarra, is also being held on multiple charges — including malice murder — related to Riley’s death.
The brothers are from Venezuela, officials said.
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) became aware of Diego Ibarra’s undocumented status when an Athens-Clarke County police officer approached him, the sworn affidavit revealed.
At the time, local authorities believed that he matched the description of the suspect sought for Riley’s killing.
Diego Ibarra gave the officer a permanent resident card, or green card, which was then determined to be fraudulent, the document explained.
Further investigation revealed that he was met by the US Border Patrol in El Paso, Texas, on April 30, 2023.
He was processed for immediate removal, but was released to New York City pending asylum after he claimed reasonable fear of returning to his home country, the affidavit explained.
Several months later, in late September, he was nabbed by the Athens-Clarke County Police Department for driving under the influence and driving without a license.
He was subsequently arrested in the popular college area two more times: Once in October for shoplifting, and once in December for failing to appear for a fingerprintable offense, according to the official document.
Diego Ibarra’s initial court appearance remains undetermined, the US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia noted.
If convicted, he faces a maximum of 10 years behind bars.
It is not clear if authorities are also seeking to charge him with any crimes related to Riley’s killing.
The 22-year-old Augusta University nursing student was found dead from blunt force trauma on a trail near Lake Herrick on the nearby University of Georgia campus Thursday.
She was initially reported missing by a friend after failing to return from a morning run.
At a press conference Friday night, UGA Police Chief Jeffrey Clark said that the suspect did not know Riley, and described the incident as a “crime of opportunity.”
Clark confirmed that Jose Ibarra is not a US citizen, but declined to elaborate on his immigration status.
