CLARKE COUNTY, Ga. — The brother of the man convicted of killing UGA student Laken Riley has been sentenced to prison after admitted he had a fraudulent green card, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday.
Diego Jose Ibarra, 29, was sentenced to serve 48 months in prison after pleading guilty to two counts of possession of a fraudulent document on July 15, 2024. Ibarra will be placed in ICE custody at the conclusion of his federal prison sentence and deported, said the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Middle District of Georgia.
Officials say Homeland Security learned Diego Ibarra was undocumented in the U.S. on Feb. 23, 2024 during Riley’s murder investigation.
Another brother, 25-year-old Argenis Ibarra, was sentenced to time served after pleading guilty to possession of a fraudulent document on Dec. 10. Rosbeli Flores-Bello, a former roommate, was sentenced to time served after she pleaded guilty to possession of a fraudulent document.
They both were ordered to be turned over to ICE and be deported immediately, the attorney’s office said.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
Riley was kidnapped and murdered during a morning run at UGA.
During the search for clues, an Athens-Clarke County Police Department officer approached Diego Ibarra because he matched the description of the primary suspect in the murder investigation, which was his brother, Jose Antonio Ibarra.
Diego Ibarra gave the ACCPD officer a fake green card as his identification and was arrested shortly thereafter.
An investigation into the fake green card showed that on April 30, 2023, Diego Ibarra entered the U.S. illegally by crossing the border near the Ysleta station in El Paso, Texas.
RELATED STORIES:
- Laken Riley murder case: How selfies from Jose Ibarra could impact the case
- Laken Riley murder case: Bench trial begins Friday for accused killer Jose Ibarra
- Laken Riley murder case: Jose Ibarra waives right to jury trial, asks for bench trial
- Judge denies motion to suppress evidence for Laken Riley’s accused killer ahead of trial
- Laken Riley murder case: Attorneys for Jose Ibarra ask judge to throw out evidence
He admitted to border patrol officials that he illegally crossed the border, resisting arrest and attempting to avoid apprehension at any cost.
An Athens-Clarke County judge sentenced Jose Antonio Ibarra in November to life in prison without the possibility of parole for murder and other charges in Riley’s killing.
The nursing student’s body was found Feb. 22, 2024, in the woods after her roommate reported she never returned from a morning run.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2025 Cox Media Group
