Augusta, GA
Students, parents rattled after nursing student found dead on UGA campus; classes canceled
ATHENS, Ga. — UPDATE 2/23/2024: A woman found dead on the University of Georgia campus after she went for a jog has been identified as 22-year-old Laken Hope Riley, according to the Athens-Clarke County coroner.
Police announced Friday night they had issued arrest warrants for 26-year-old Jose Antonio Ibarra, who is expected to be charged with malice murder, felony murder, aggravated battery, aggravated assault, false imprisonment, kidnapping, hindering a 911 call and concealing the death of another. Hereâs the latest on the investigation.
Police suspect foul play after a woman was found dead on the campus of the University of Georgia Thursday.
Just after noon on Thursday, UGA police received a call from someone asking officers to perform a welfare check on a friend who went for a run at the intramural fields in the morning and had not returned.
Officers began searching the area and eventually found the woman dead behind Lake Herrick, which is a short distance away from the fields.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Athens-Clarke County Police are investigating this death in addition to university police.
UGA confirmed to ABC News that the victim was an undergraduate student until the spring of 2023. Augusta University confirmed the victim is a student at their College of Nursing campus in Athens. Her name has not been released.
Classes at UGA and the Augusta University College of Nursing have been canceled for tomorrow.
âWe have been fully briefed on this terrible situation. Foul play is suspected, and we are already receiving support from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Athens-Clarke County Police Department to investigate this crime,â UGA officials said.
Officials said in a news conference Thursday night that they are considering the womanâs death a crime and that they are still searching for a suspect.
âThis is a tragic day and I want to offer my most sincerest condolences to the grieving family, friends, and campus partners,â UGA Police Chief Jeff Clark said. âWe are going to leave no rock unturned during this investigation.â
TRENDING STORIES:
Channel 2â²s Michael Doudna was live in Athens on WSB Tonight at 11 p.m. UGA police said the investigation is still ongoing as police are still trying to identify who murdered this young woman âin broad daylight â in a popular spot.
âThere has not been a homicide in the last 20 years here on campus,â said Clark.
According to police, the nursing student went for a run in the morning. When she didnât come home, a friend called police.
âThe individual was unconscious and not breathing and had visible injuries,â said Clark.
The death rattled both students and parents.
âThat hits a little too close to home,â said Veronica Bennett.
Bennettâs daughter is a UGA junior. Sheâs part of a group of mothers pushing for security improvements she says the university has rejected, such as blue safety lights, that go beyond the UGA safety app.
âAs a parent, I get tired of that being UGAâs go-to. Oh, we have the safety app. Well, the safety app is not much of a deterrent,â said Bennett.
As for the case, police combed the scene into the night—looking for clues to try and find the person responsible.
âMy investigators will be working on this case day and night. They will be looking at every security camera we have,â
NewsChopper 2 was over the scene Thursday afternoon, where crime scene tape was strung up in the woods and officers were roaming the woods.
This is the second on-campus death at UGA in the past 24 hours. A student was found dead at Brumby Hall on Wednesday night.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
The studentâs identity and cause of death have not been released.
Anyone with information potentially related to this death is asked to contact the UGA Police Department immediately at 706-542-2200.
IN OTHER NEWS:
©2023 Cox Media Group
Augusta, GA
No. 14 Houston dominates early, rolls past BYU
We recognize you are attempting to access this website from a country belonging to the European Economic Area (EEA) including the EU which
enforces the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and therefore access cannot be granted at this time.
For any issues, contact enews@wfxg.com or call 706-650-5400.
Augusta, GA
‘Premier’ Ga. prosecutor takes key role in Augusta DA’s Office
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – A new assistant district attorney for the Augusta Judicial Circuit was sworn in on Friday, according to Augusta District Attorney Jared Williams.
On Nov. 26, the Augusta Commission approved the 2025 Budget with approximately $1.1 million in additional funding for the District Attorney’s Office.
“As a result of this community investment in law enforcement, one of the premier prosecutors in the state of Georgia will now serve our local community,” said Williams.
Williams says Linda Dunikoski, formerly of the Cobb and Fulton DA’s Offices was sworn in on Friday.
Dunikoski will also serve in leadership as Chief of Appeals and Director of Attorney Development, according to a press release.
Dunikoski served as lead prosecutor in the case of the three men who killed Ahmaud Arbery, a local son of Burke County who was murdered while jogging in 2020.
Williams says Dunikoski will represent Richmond and Burke County citizens in the highest courts, train local prosecutors and assist in jury trials involving serious violent felonies.
“We are grateful to have the experience, talent, and leadership of a prosecutor like Mrs. Dunikoski,” said Williams after her swearing. “Recruiting her to serve the citizens of our community would not have been possible without the investment our Commission and city leadership made. This is just the beginning of our renewed efforts to make the Augusta Judicial Circuit the safest place to live, work, and raise a family.”
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
Augusta, GA
Augusta leaders aim to help homeless teens with new task force
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – As we start the new year, Augusta leaders are hoping to target part of the local homelessness crisis you might not be aware of — homeless teens.
They still show up to school, do their homework and play sports, but don’t have a reliable roof over their heads.
This is what a new teenage homelessness task force hopes to address.
City leaders are putting weight to words.
“I don’t want to think that the homeless task force is just meeting and throwing things at the wall to see what sticks. That’s not the case,” said Commissioner Jordan Johnson.
And making sure no one is left behind.
“They aren’t just people with shopping carts. We know their names. And they know ours,” said Johnson.
For Nomi Stanton and Johnson, it’s a year of change.
“Pull the city together, pull the nonprofits together to help people,” said Stanton.
Stanton says when you think of homelessness, you think of adults.
But think again.
A LIST OF RESOURCES:
“There are homeless teens. I see children pulling their own luggage. Our community is better than that. And so those are the things that I’m really looking forward to tackling,” said Stanton.
The first step: a teenage homeless task force.
“It would be absolutely beautiful for teenagers to also be actively part of how they can make their community a better place. Long after we’re gone, those are the future leaders of this community,” said Stanton.
They’re even pulling in outside resources.
Johnson said: “What we’re working on now is a partnership with an organization outside of Atlanta that specializes in getting folks out of hotels and into housing.”
The goal is to get people back on their feet.
One way they’re doing that is with mailboxes.
Stanton said: “But you still have to register your children at school. If you are staying at the shelter and you are coming to GAP ministries and getting your birth certificate and then going to the DMV to get a state ID, you need to have an address.”
The new mailboxes will be in front of GAP Ministries soon, and open for applications.
“If you think about every single one of them was someone’s baby, that’s what I think of,” said Stanton.
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
-
Health1 week ago
New Year life lessons from country star: 'Never forget where you came from'
-
Technology1 week ago
Meta’s ‘software update issue’ has been breaking Quest headsets for weeks
-
Business4 days ago
These are the top 7 issues facing the struggling restaurant industry in 2025
-
Politics1 week ago
'Politics is bad for business.' Why Disney's Bob Iger is trying to avoid hot buttons
-
Culture4 days ago
The 25 worst losses in college football history, including Baylor’s 2024 entry at Colorado
-
Sports4 days ago
The top out-of-contract players available as free transfers: Kimmich, De Bruyne, Van Dijk…
-
Politics2 days ago
New Orleans attacker had 'remote detonator' for explosives in French Quarter, Biden says
-
Politics2 days ago
Carter's judicial picks reshaped the federal bench across the country