UPDATE: Brother of UGA campus murder suspect to make first court appearance in Macon on Monday
Diego Ibarra, the brother of the man charged with murdering a woman on the University of Georgia's campus, will make his first court appearance in Macon on Monday.
UPDATE (2/27): Diego Ibarra, the brother of the man charged with murdering a woman on the University of Georgia’s campus, will make his first court appearance in Macon on Monday.
Melissa Hodges, the spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia, says the appearance will happen before U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles Weigle at the U.S. Courthouse at 2:30 p.m.
ORIGINAL STORY (2/23):
ATHENS, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – The brother of the man charged with murdering a woman on the University of Georgia’s campus was charged Friday night with possessing a fraudulent green card.
He’s currently being held in state custody, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia.
As of Friday night, the initial appearance for 29-year-old Diego Ibarra of Venuezula—the brother of Jose Ibarra, who faces state charges in connection with the death of Laken Riley—had not been scheduled. If convicted, Ibarra faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.
According to the criminal complaint and sworn affidavit, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) was made aware of Ibarra’s undocumented presence in the United States on Friday. An Athens-Clarke County Police Department officer approached Ibarra because he matched the description of a suspect in the homicide investigation. Ibarra presented the officer with a U.S. permanent resident card (also called a green card) as identification. The card was determined to be fraudulent.
“Ibarra is a citizen of Venezuela and was processed for expedited removal but claimed a credible fear of return to Venezuela,” the release said. “He was consequently released from immigration custody pending adjudication of his claim for asylum on April 30, 2024.”
According to the criminal complaint and sworn affidavit, since entering the country, Ibarra has been arrested three times by Athens law enforcement for charges including driving under the influence of alcohol, driving without a license and theft by shoplifting.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office says the case is being investigated by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) with critical assistance from FBI, GBI, Athens-Clarke County Police Department, University of Georgia Police Department and Clarke County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Morrison is prosecuting the case.
