Found Deceased GA - University of Georgia Laken Hope Riley, 22, found dead near University of Georgia intramural fields, foul play suspected, 22 Feb 2024

[Cedars]

Eh, I don’t think it would be a safe assumption that they knew that part of campus well. The dining hall that Diego worked in briefly was on the other side of campus. ... People in Athens (students or otherwise) only go to that part of campus for the trails, the lake, or overflow parking on football Saturdays.

RSBM

But a sexual predator would likely spend a fair amount of time scoping out locations where he could make a surprise attack on a woman.

JMO

 

[Chimera]

with this information would it be crazy to assume they both knew the surrounding campus area pretty well? We also know that Laken was an avid jogger who frequented the fields, perhaps the day of the murder wasn’t the first time Jose saw Larken or knew of her. I’m curious to know the outcome of the brother being investigated in all this

Laken could have been stalked for several days or even weeks.
Omo.

 

[sunshineray]

He looks worryingly similar to RM’s killer in these…

That second pic does kind of favor RM guy's face but on the door cam he looks much taller and more bulky to me.

 

[investigatefred]

I don't know Spanish so I don't know what is being said or what songs are playing, but all the videos have a very dark theme.. even some of them with him partially masked.. it's just odd. The brothers look very similar and both seem to have gained and lost weight and changed their physical appearance at least from looking at their photos on FB. Very odd.

I agree, I went down the rabbit hole and have watched through most of the videos.

Also to note, the Jose Antonio Ibarra profile lists his hometown as Escuintla, which is in Guatemala; his Franco Gocho profile gives Recife, Brazil.

Wondering if he's really even from Venezuela as has been reported....


ETA....the actual profile of "Gocho Franco" is the brother "Diego" in most videos.

 

[Iloveicarly]

Eh, I don’t think it would be a safe assumption that they knew that part of campus well. The dining hall that Diego worked in briefly was on the other side of campus. My husband works at UGA but did not attend UGA, so his perspective of campus is much different than my own. (I’m a fourth generation UGA grad and grew up coming here all the time.) even though his job requires him on all parts of campus, he has never been to the IM fields and wouldn’t know how to get to the trail portion. People in Athens (students or otherwise) only go to that part of campus for the trails, the lake, or overflow parking on football Saturdays.

MOO

thanks for this perspective, i suppose this would explain why Diego (Jose’s brother) would be unfamiliar with that area but not Jose particularly. It’s just the whole “crime of opportunity” label isn’t sitting right with me. If Jose happened to cross paths with Larken and took the opportunity to murder her there and then, it would be interesting to know why he was initially at the fields that morning. Was he going going for a walk? Perhaps a jog? who knows but i refuse to believe that no premeditation was involved knowing the facts.

 

[Cedars]

If Jose happened to cross paths with Larken and took the opportunity to murder her there and then, it would be interesting to know why he was initially at the fields that morning. Was he going going for a walk? Perhaps a jog?

I believe sometimes the predator has chosen a location and a place to hide while waiting for a suitable victim. That way they keep a very low profile. Trying to follow a woman around will get them noticed.

IMO, Hope was not the only woman who went through that area. She was the unlucky one who came through at the wrong moment.

JMO

 

[New Penny]

Yeah, I think most of us look at a murder case and ask “how could this have been prevented?”

Many times the answer is straightforward, as the offender has serious past crimes that should have meant he was behind bars at the time the crime was committed.

Here, we have a bit of a different situation. He’s here, and he’s allowed to stay here for the time being. Once he commits a crime though, especially when that crime endangers another, that’s where a massive failure occurs. This guy did that on at least two occasions, in two different states.

He should have been held for processing out.

That second pic does kind of favor RM guy's face but on the door cam he looks much taller and more bulky to me.

Closer to the camera maybe?

 

[flowershop]

I am interested in the financial picture. These brothers cross the border illegally in Texas. I assume they are not trust-fund ‘refugees.’ Somehow they are able to travel all the way to NYC. After one of them at least, is arrested for committing a crime…they have the funds to get ALL THE WAY to Georgia.

Then, VOILA! they have a deposit to rent an apartment. It is just a months rent or two and security deposit?

They must be paying the rent.

If they are driving without a license, they have a car.

If they are arrested for drunk driving, they can afford alcohol and both look well fed.

Mid morning, one brother has enough time on his hands to beat a girl to death.

So where are they employed or WHO exactly is paying for their lifestyles?

All valid questions. This may help explain how the men got to NYC.

Texas has spent more than $148 million busing migrants to other parts of the country

Since Gov. Greg Abbott announced the program in 2022, Texas has paid to bus more than 102,000 migrants to cities around the country.

www.elpasotimes.com

 

[airportwoman]

I am from another country, but as an observer of the situation in Venezuala, it is an enormous freaking mess, overwhelming 'the system' in many countries. Historic Venezuelan refugee crisis tests U.S. border policies
"More than 7.7 million people have fled Venezuela in recent years — the largest displacement crisis ever recorded in the Western Hemisphere."

JMO

Venezuela was heading towards First World economic status, when things cratered.

 

[acutename]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1761523137731088825

https://twitter.com/x/status/1761523139702358321

working and not getting paid could make some people hate the university community IMO. maybe he just thought "all these people are happy and belong here and poor me..." (not that I believe that explains murder!, but if you have a low frustration tolerance and act out.....)

 

[ErinC]

He looks worryingly similar to RM’s killer in these…

So I did a little experiment- I presented Jose's picture and the sketch of RM's killer next to each other, without any context, to my husband (a non-sleuther and infrequent reader of the news). His reaction was to state unprompted that the sketch and the picture of Jose were of the same person. If they are the same person, DNA should prove or disprove that point, but do we know if the LE on RM's case have been contacted regarding this fellow?

 

[acutename]

I don't know Spanish so I don't know what is being said or what songs are playing, but all the videos have a very dark theme.. even some of them with him partially masked.. it's just odd. The brothers look very similar and both seem to have gained and lost weight and changed their physical appearance at least from looking at their photos on FB. Very odd.

Michael Jackson Thriller with the gloves? would be interesting if some one who really knows Spanish would chime in... one of the written phrases as per google translate is about looking for a girl friend. however translating slang and song lyrics is not straight forward. IMO and no idea if the song bits are really messages to some one he knows.

 

[nightowl1975]

So I did a little experiment- I presented Jose's picture and the sketch of RM's killer next to each other, without any context, to my husband (a non-sleuther and infrequent reader of the news). His reaction was to state unprompted that the sketch and the picture of Jose were of the same person. If they are the same person, DNA should prove or disprove that point, but do we know if the LE on RM's case have been contacted regarding this fellow?

Out of curiosity, I wonder how tall Jose’s brother is.

 

[MassGuy]

So I did a little experiment- I presented Jose's picture and the sketch of RM's killer next to each other, without any context, to my husband (a non-sleuther and infrequent reader of the news). His reaction was to state unprompted that the sketch and the picture of Jose were of the same person. If they are the same person, DNA should prove or disprove that point, but do we know if the LE on RM's case have been contacted regarding this fellow?

There are a couple issues. The first is this guy's height, which is listed at 5'3", as compared to the Morin suspect, whose height is listed at 5'9". They determined that from a doorbell camera, which would have allowed them to estimate really closely.

The second is that Jose Ibarra had a New York sponsor listed when he entered the county. We know he did settle there for a period of time. He'd have a place to stay in New York, so it doesn't make much sene for him to travel to California, then go to Maryland, then finally end up where he was supposed to be.

Unfortunately, there is plenty of precedent for crimes like this, so I don't consider this anything more than a coincidence. DNA will obviously provide a definitive answer though.

 

[MassGuy]

Out of curiosity, I wonder how tall Jose’s brother is.

5'5" according to his booking information.

 

[BenjaminJAndersonAlly]

I can only say it has helped me, tremendously, to come here to WS and to have a dialogue with others.

I am but a single individual. However, I am sure many who have, unfortunately, found themselves in a similar situation or have been surrounded by equally horrific circumstances may likely share my sentiments.

Many of us who are “still here” and have been “left behind” grieving when our loved ones have been taken do find engaging with others via this channel beneficial. MOO

Also, Ben’s murder & the support I have received here have definitely inspired me to become an amateur Web Sleuth, myself.

Now, I often do my very best to contribute in any way I can with other cases.

Thank you (AGAIN) to any and all of you who have reached out and/or assisted in Ben’s case (AND ALL OTHERS).

Together, we celebrate each and every small victory & the larger contributions we have made, too.

Rest in peace beautiful, Laken. We shall never give up the fight for justice … For time is all we have and don’t, truly.

 

[AppleTreeGreen]

So I noticed that the url for Jose Ibarra's FB has the name Victor Franco in it so I looked at the friends of his to see if anyone has the name Franco and I found this FB account listed in Athens Georgia.. and then when I am looking around on it, I see that Gocho Franco is in fact Diego Ibarra so did they change their names?

In viewing Diego's FB his appearnace seems to be all over the place also. I know the booking photo shows a mane that appears older than 29.. but many of these FB photos are younger looking and thinner than what his face shot appears.

Gocho Franco

Gocho Franco is on Facebook. Join Facebook to connect with Gocho Franco and others you may know. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected.

www.facebook.com

Then I noticed this profile liking something on the previous ones page.

Diego Jose Ibarra

Diego Jose Ibarra

Diego Jose Ibarra is on Facebook. Join Facebook to connect with Diego Jose Ibarra and others you may know. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the world more open and connected.

www.facebook.com

Very odd videos here. So I am very curious what their actual names are.

My condolences to the family, friends and community of Laken Riley. I hope as they continue to advocate for justice on the behalf of their beloved, they are given all the love, support and peace they deserve.

One thing I noticed is that the individuals in the Victor Franco and Diego Ibarra pages have similar hair cuts to the perp in the LA home invasion video who is also responsible for Rachel Morin’s murder and the sexual assault of an underage girl in the LA home. IMO, the haircuts do seem to standout or perhaps I am just not used to seeing such styles. Still, this makes me wonder if LE are able to link that hairstyle or cut to a specific city, region, subculture or cultural group where it is considered more trendy or more commonly seen? Perhaps this may help narrow down the perp’s background or interests or social groups? Also I wonder if it would be helpful to LE to ask barbers in the LA and park areas around where the attacks occurred if they remembered giving such a haircut around the time crimes occurred and seeing if they can gather any data or identification that way? In particular, I was wondering this more in the LA case since it looks like in the surveillance video that perp’s may have been cut recently?

 

[RetLawyer]

Closer to the camera maybe?

The home cam videos might make him look bulky, taller, more slender than he is due to how close he is to the camera and the angle of the camera. They really distort a person on a video.

 

[Sundog]

Plus, don't the Police just go looking for missing persons after 24 hours? The fact they raced over there so quickly is telling.

If it was campus police, they would respond immediately. Do we know if it was campus police who showed up first to look for Laken? I don't remember what MSM reported about who arrived first on the scene to search for her.

Some states have campus calls to 911 go directly to the campus LE. I don't know how it works at this campus of the University of Colorado.

 

[Katiegam]

If it was campus police, they would respond immediately. Do we know if it was campus police who showed up first to look for Laken? I don't remember what MSM reported about who arrived first on the scene to search for her.

Some states have campus calls to 911 go directly to the campus LE. I don't know how it works at this campus of the University of Colorado.

Athens resident at UGA alum here - in my experience, when you call 911, you are routed to the Athens-Clarke County Police. UGA PD has jurisdiction over all UGA property as well as, in some special circumstances (which I think this would be) up to 500 yards from the property. Since the roommate seems to have called 911, she would've been routed to ACC PD. I lived on campus at UGA for a year, a year in the sorority house, and then two years in a home less than a quarter of a mile mile from where this happened. Even when living on campus I would never have thought about calling UGA PD. Honestly, as a student (or Athens resident) you forget they exist. They drive around campus, respond to issues in student housing on campus, and help with football security. Nothing but respect for UGA PD, but I don't think anyone would really think about them in a real emergency. I looked on their website, and they say to only call them for a non-emergency. Now, I do think think that 911 / ACCPD can dispatch them, and it would make sense to me that UGA PD would be closer to the IM fields and able to respond more quickly.

This article says that the roommate called UGA PD. Other articles just say she called "police" or "authorities". Not saying that first article is incorrect, but I find it very specific that she called UGA PD, especially considering they lived in off campus housing. Perhaps her thinking was that Laken should be on the UGA campus, so they needed UGA police. I would just have to do some digging to find that number rather than call 911.

All MOO, just thinking out loud here. Personally, I don't think which "police" she called is a big deal. However, when I put myself in the roommate's shoes, I do think she had to have access to the location of Laken's phone. My roommate at UGA was a marathon runner and would tell me "hey, I should be back by X" when going on runs. She'd also give me a general idea of her route. Had she not returned, I would think maybe something awful, maybe car trouble or a wreck, maybe she ran into someone and went to lunch. This was early iPhone days, so I don't think I could've tried to see her location. All that to say, I'd probably go drive her route or look for her car where she was starting the run before calling 911 unless I knew something more - location, no movement in a while, etc.

JMO