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Laken Riley—who was killed in February after going out for a morning jog at University of Georgia—sent a bittersweet text to her mom just before heading out for her workout, according to prosecutors.
By Leah Degrazia Nov 20, 2024 1:42 AMTags
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Content warning: This story discusses assault and murder.
Details about Laken Riley's final moments are being revealed.
Nine months after she was killed while out for a jog, prosecutors shared the final text message the 22-year-old sent to her mom Allyson Phillips just before leaving for her morning workout at the intramural fields at University of Georgia.
"Good morning," read the message shared by an investigator during the Nov. 19 trial, according 11 Alive, "about to go for a run if you're free to talk."
And that wasn't the only way Riley tried to communicate with Phillips. The nursing student also tried calling her mom less than 10 minutes later and 911 shortly after that— though the latter call was abruptly cut short, according to a timeline shared by prosecutors in court, per the outlet.
Phillips wound up missing her daughter's call, but she tried following up 20 minutes later and sent a string of anxious messages.
"You're making me nervous not answering while you're out running. Are you OK?" one text allegedly read, while the matriarch wrote in another message, according to CBS News, "Please call me. I'm worried sick about you."
By then, however, prosecutors alleged that Riley had already encountered suspect Jose Ibarra—a 26-year-old Venezuelan native who entered the U.S. illegally in 2022—on a wooded trail, where they said she died around 9:28 a.m. following a struggle.
She was reported missing by a friend after failing to return home from exercising.
E! News reached out to prosecutors and Ibarra's lawyer for comment but has not heard back.
When Riley's body was found in the woods on Feb. 22, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Lucas Breyer said in court that her clothes were "heavily manipulated," per CBS News, with the waistband of her running tights being pulled down some and her jacket, shirt and sports bra having been pulled way up.
That same month, Ibarra—whose DNA was discovered at the scene—was charged with murder, kidnapping, assault and hindering a 911 call. He has since pleaded not guilty to all the charges and is currently standing trial, though he will not testify in his own defense.
Following Riley's passing, FBI Director Christopher Wray offered his condolences to her loved ones and community at University of Georgia.
"I want to tell you how heartbroken I am," Wray said during a March 19 press conference, per CBS News, "not just for the family, friends, classmates, and staff who are grieving Laken's loss. I'm saddened to see that sense of peace shattered by Laken's murder."
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