Republicans are calling on U.S. President Joe Biden's Administration to release information relating to Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old Venezuelan national arrested in connection to the murder of University of Georgia student Laken Riley.
"According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, the Biden Administration released Ibarra into the United States in 2022 after he 'entered the U.S. illegally from Venezuela.' His February 23 criminal arrest was not his first arrest in the United States," the House Judiciary Committee wrote in a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Tuesday, first reported by News Nation.
The letter went on to request information relating to Ibarra such as case history information and "information regarding the time, date, and place of any and all of the alien's entries into the United States."
The context:
Over the weekend, police at the University of Georgia announced the arrest of Ibarra, an illegal immigrant who was charged with malice murder, aggravated battery, felony murder, false imprisonment, aggravated assault, kidnapping and concealing the death of Riley.
Riley was a 22-year-old nursing student at the University of Georgia and her body was found in a secluded area near the school's campus.
The Associated Press obtained an arrested affidavit which states that Riley's body was dragged into a wooded area and her cause of death was ruled as blunt force trauma.
What we know:
U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement previously confirmed that Ibarra was arrested in 2022 after illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas. He was later released and arrested again in New York in 2023 for charges relating to injuring a child.
The AP reported that Ibarra was released in New York before ICE officials could bring him into custody and officials in the state said they had no information relating to Ibarra's previous arrests.
Newsweek reached out to the Department of Homeland Security via email for comment.
Views:
Many Republicans have criticized U.S. President Joe Biden's administration over the U.S.-Mexico border and in the death of Riley.
"The blood of Laken Riley is on the hands of Joe Biden, Alejandro Mayorkas, and the government of Athens-Clarke County," Georgia Republican Representative Mike Collins wrote on social media this week.
In a statement shared with Fox News Digital this week, the White House said, "We would like to extend our deepest condolences to the family and loved ones of Laken Hope Riley...People should be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law if they are found to be guilty. Given this is an active case, we would have to refer you to state law enforcement and ICE."
What's next:
It is unclear how the Homeland Security Department will respond to the letter requesting information from the House Judiciary Committee.
Biden has also continued to encourage Congress to pass a bipartisan border security bill amid ongoing opposition from House Speaker Mike Johnson and other Republicans.
Update, 2/27/24, 2:19 p.m. EST: This story has been updated with further information.
Update, 2/27/24, 2:55 p.m. EST: This story has been updated with further information.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
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Matthew Impelli is a Newsweek staff writer based in New York. His focus is reporting social issues and crime. In ... Read more
