MACON, Ga. — The brother of the suspect charged in a woman’s murder on the University of Georgia’s campus changed his plea in his green card case.
Court documents show that Diego Ibarra pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of counterfeit immigration document on Monday.
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Diego Ibarra is the older brother of Jose Ibarra, who a grand jury indicted on murder charges in the death of Laken Riley. The 22-year-old Augusta University nursing student was killed on a UGA campus trail on Feb. 22.
According to court documents, Athens-Clarke County police officers approached Diego Ibarra because he matched the description of his brother. During the investigation, police said he gave them his fake green card.
Diego Ibarra will return to court on Oct. 7 to learn his sentence. He faces a maximum of 10 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine for each count.
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According to a UGA spokesperson, Diego Ibarra, 29, presented a fake green card to the hiring unit to begin a temporary position as a dishwasher in Bolton Dining Hall at the UGA on Feb. 6, 2024.
According to court documents, Athens-Clarke County police officers approached him because he matched the description of his brother, 26-year-old Jose Ibarra, who was wanted for Riley’s murder.
UGA said Ibarra never submitted further documentation required to keep the job and was never paid by the University. He has since been fired.
Authorities said since being in Athens, Diego Ibarra had been arrested three times for multiple charges, such as driving under the influence, shoplifting, and failure to appear for a fingerprintable offense.
Channel 2′s Courtney Francisco previously reported that authorities believe Diego Ibarra arrived in Georgia from New York by Sept. 2023 after officers arrested him for the first time and charged him with driving under the influence without a license.
A month later, officials said Diego Ibarra was arrested again for shoplifting. Court documents said he was then arrested in December for failing to appear for fingerprinting.
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