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lite.cnn.com - on gopher - inofficial
ARTICLE VIEW:
Laken Riley went for a morning jog. Less than 30 minutes later, she was
dead. What we know about her final moments
By Ashley R. Williams, CNN
Updated:
7:24 AM EST, Sun November 17, 2024
Source: CNN
, 22, left home at 9:03 a.m. on February 22 with her iPhone for a
February morning jog. She brought her smartwatch and noise-canceling
AirPods along for the run.
Just 25 minutes later, she was dead.
Her house’s Ring camera footage captured Riley, wearing a ponytail
and dressed in a black jacket, black leggings and white sneakers as she
left.
One of the nursing student’s roommates later wondered why she
hadn’t returned home. Riley wasn’t known for being late or off
schedule. She’d been gone for hours.
Concerned, the roommate checked Riley’s location using her phone’s
Find My feature.
Riley’s initials, “LR,” had not budged on the app. Her phone’s
last known location was the nearby University of Georgia trail she
often visited. Her roommates called authorities.
A university police officer searched the wooded area near the trail. In
about 20 minutes, he found Riley’s partially nude remains.
Prosecutors of Jose Ibarra, 26, are expected to provide new details
showing why they believe the undocumented Venezuelan migrant is
responsible for Riley’s death as the trial resumes Monday.
Opening statements began Friday, nine months after Riley, a student at
Augusta University’s Athens campus, was fatally struck in the head
with a rock several times and asphyxiated.
Ibarra is charged with murder and aggravated assault with intent to
rape in connection with Riley’s death. His legal defense team argued
Friday any evidence pointing to his involvement in Riley’s killing is
“circumstantial.”
DNA and technology, including a call Riley made to 911, offer clues
into what happened near the end of the student’s life and who
prosecutors believe is responsible.
A left thumbprint with DNA matching Ibarra was later discovered on
Riley’s phone, according to prosecutors.
Riley’s final moments were revealed through opening statements from
prosecutors and the testimony of her roommates.
Here is what we know.
Riley’s final movements captured on cameras, iPhone location
Around 8 a.m. on February 22, Riley was hanging out at home with her
iPad. She took notes. Did her homework. Watched Netflix.
She and her roommate and occasional running partner, Connolly Huth,
chatted about their weekend plans. At about 8:45 a.m., Huth left for
class. She’d never see Riley again.
Riley set off on her run not long after. Around 9:05 a.m., a trail
camera spotted her jogging toward what would soon become a crime scene.
Riley’s mother would normally speak with her daughter during her
runs. She called Riley around 9:06 a.m.
Riley did not pick up.
Her mom then called Riley’s three roommates, each of whom shared
their phone’s locations with one another, including Riley’s.
Cell phone service issues with provider AT&T that day had hindered the
roommates’ efforts to locate Riley. They couldn’t reach her for
hours.
Lilly Steiner and Sofia Magana, Riley’s roommates, searched the trail
for her around 11:30 a.m.
Riley’s last-known Find My location in the middle of Oconee Forest
Park guided them.
There was no sign of Riley.
The women instead came across a single AirPod. It was Riley’s.
With no cellular service in the woods, they returned home to call the
University of Georgia police.
They reported her missing around 12:05 p.m.
Riley’s smartwatch data captures struggle
The Garmin smartwatch Riley wore captured crucial data that prosecutors
say give clues as to what happened as she struggled for her life.
Around 9:10 a.m., the data analyzed by the FBI’s Cellular Analysis
Survey Team appeared to show something happening that halted Riley’s
morning run. She initiated her phone’s SOS function around that time.
She called 911.
Data from the smartwatch showed Riley’s heart rate dropping over the
next several minutes.
After a few more minutes, her smartwatch moved about 65 feet away from
the trail into the woods.
Sometime during Riley’s fight for her life and the struggle over her
phone, she gathered beneath her right fingernails what prosecutors say
was Ibarra’s DNA.
Riley’s call to the Athens-Clarke County Police Department ended at
9:12 a.m. Her phone disconnected the call.
Dispatchers attempted to call her back. There was no answer.
Her heart rate continued to show on the smartwatch data until just
before 9:30 a.m.
The data revealed a struggle that lasted several minutes.
At 9:28 a.m., the smartwatch showed no further movement. Riley’s
heart stopped.
CNN’s Rebekah Riess, Devon M. Sayers, Holly Yan, Nick Valencia and
Amanda Musa contributed to this report.
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