Southeast
Feds mum on how Laken Riley's killer got one-way plane ticket from migrant shelter ground zero
Federal officials declined to provide more information to Fox News Digital about a “humanitarian flight” that Laken Riley’s convicted killer, Jose Ibarra, was granted from New York City to Atlanta in September 2023.
In a Georgia courtroom on Monday, during Ibarra’s trial, prosecutors displayed a photo of a Delta Air Lines ticket from New York to Atlanta, dated Sept. 28, 2023, for Ibarra, the Venezuelan illegal immigrant accused of attacking and killing Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, on the University of Georgia campus in Athens in February.
FBI Special Agent Jamie Hipkiss said a photo of the boarding pass was pulled from a WhatsApp account associated with Ibarra.
Ibarra’s former roommate, Rosbeli Flores-Bello, testified on Monday that she and Ibarra — both Venezuelan nationals who connected in Queens, New York, in 2023 after meeting through a mother-in-law — went to the Roosevelt Hotel in Manhattan in September of that year to request a “humanitarian flight” to Atlanta. Ibarra’s brother, Diego, promised they would find work in Athens, Georgia.
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Jose Ibarra’s Delta Air Lines ticket dated Sept. 28, 2023 from New York City to Atlanta. (COURT TV Pool cam/ Athens-Clarke County court)
The Roosevelt, which is located not far from New York’s iconic Grand Central Station, was transformed into an immigration processing hub or “reticketing center” in May 2023. The New York City official government website defines “reticketing” as “a service provided to individuals who are new arrivals to the United States and are seeking asylum.”
President-elect Trump’s incoming border czar Tom Homan has vowed to put an end to this practice. Homan served in Trump’s first administration as acting director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
New York City Mayor Eric Adams’ office told Fox News Digital that “[w]hat happened to Laken Riley is a gut-wrenching tragedy, and we are hopeful her suspected killer is held accountable to the fullest extent of the law.”
“Cities should never have had to carry the cost and burden of this national humanitarian crisis.”
“Mayor Adams has been abundantly clear that we need to fix our broken immigration system. Cities should never have had to carry the cost and burden of this national humanitarian crisis,” press secretary Kayla Mamelak Altus said in a statement.
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Asylum seekers line up in front of the historic Roosevelt Hotel, converted into a city-run shelter for newly arrived migrant families in New York City. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
“More than 223,000 migrants have come through New York City’s intake system since the spring of 2022, and our reticketing system is one tool in our very limited toolbox as a city that helps migrants take the next step out of our shelter system,” Altus continued. “We continue to call on Democrats and Republicans to finally come together to pass meaningful immigration reform for the first time in four decades.”
Reticketing centers, the New York City website says, help “arrange further travel outside of NYC from” the Roosevelt Hotel, among other locations.
Migrants reach for food being handed out while being recorded by a woman outside the Roosevelt Hotel, where dozens of recently arrived migrants have been camping out as they try to secure temporary housing on Aug. 2, 2023 in New York City. (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
“If you have just arrived in NYC and need reticketing services, you should first visit the Arrival Center at the Roosevelt Hotel, located at 45 East 45th Street in Manhattan,” the website states. “At the Arrival Center, you will undergo an intake process in your preferred language, during which you can express your desire to be reticketed. Eligibility will be confirmed by staff.”
The FBI told Fox News Digital that the agency “has nothing further to provide beyond the testimony given in court.”
A spokesperson for Immigration and Customs Enforcement said “the FBI is involved in this,” referring to the plane ticket, and referred Fox News Digital to the Bureau. “We don’t have any information,” the spokesperson said.
The White House did not respond to questions about Ibarra’s conviction generally or his humanitarian flight. Delta Air Lines did not provide any further information about the flight.
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Jose Ibarra pays attention to a witness during his trial at the Athens-Clarke County Superior Court on Monday, Nov. 18, 2024 in Athens, Georgia. (Miguel Martinez/Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Jose Ibarra is charged with 10 counts in connection with Riley’s February murder.
The murder suspect entered the United States through El Paso, Texas, in 2022 and was freed on border parole. He initially lived in New York City, where he was arrested for endangering a child prior to his move to Athens.
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From left to right, Connolly Huth, roommate of Laken Riley, Lauren Phillips, sister of Laken Riley, and Sofia Magana, roommate of Laken Riley, react as Superior Court Judge H. Patrick Haggard announces the verdict during the trial of Jose Ibarra at Athens-Clarke County Superior Court, Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024 in Athens, Georgia. (Hyosub Shin/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP, Pool)
Ibarra, 26; and his brothers, Diego Ibarra, 29; and Argenis Ibarra, 24, lived together in an apartment complex in Athens, Georgia, less than half a mile from the scene where Riley was found dead. All three men were questioned and taken into custody after Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, was murdered while she was jogging around the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22.
Diego Ibarra — who briefly worked on UGA’s campus in a dining hall — is charged with green card fraud after displaying a fake ID with two different birth dates to police, and Argenis is being held on an immigration detainer.
Court documents released Wednesday revealed that Diego Ibarra has ties to the violent Venezuela-based organized crime gang Tren de Aragua.
Federal authorities say that the gang, also known as TdA, has become known for its violent turf wars as it has expanded into other countries in South and Central America. The gang has established itself in multiple states, according to the Justice Department.
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Southeast
High school teacher arrested in alleged sex case involving student
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A Georgia high school teacher was arrested Wednesday after allegations of inappropriate contact between a teacher and a minor student surfaced at Lee County High School.
Danielle Weaver, 29, of Leesburg, is charged with child molestation and improper sexual contact by an employee, agent or foster parent, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations (GBI).
Lee County High School requested the Leesburg Police Department investigate the allegations on Feb. 3, and the GBI was called to assist the following day.
Danielle Weaver, 29, of Leesburg, Ga., is charged with child molestation and improper sexual contact by an employee. (Lee County Sheriff’s Office)
Investigators identified Weaver as the “subject,” and identified the victim as a student under 18 years old at Lee County High School, according to officials.
GBI agents continued the investigation along with the Leesburg Police Department, and arrest warrants were obtained for Weaver on Tuesday.
A Google Maps street view photo of Lee County High School in Leesburg, Ga. (Google Maps)
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Weaver turned herself in to the Lee County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday, and was later released on bond, according to a report from WALB News.
This investigation is active and ongoing, according to the GBI.
The incident allegedly happened at a high school in Georgia. (Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
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Once complete, the case file will be given to the Southwestern Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office for prosecution.
Leesburg is located in South Georgia, and is about an hour and a half north of Tallahassee, Florida.
Lee County High School’s communications team did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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Southeast
Federal court clears way for Ten Commandments to be displayed in Louisiana public school classrooms
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A federal appeals court cleared the way Friday for a Louisiana law requiring the Ten Commandments to be displayed in public school classrooms, lifting a lower court block and reigniting debate over religion in public education.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit voted 12-6 to lift a block first imposed in 2024, finding it was too early to determine the constitutionality of the law. Critics argue the requirement violates the separation of church and state, while supporters say the Ten Commandments are historical and foundational to U.S. law.
The court said in the majority opinion that it was unclear how schools would display the poster-sized materials, noting that the law allows additional content, like the Mayflower Compact or the Declaration of Independence, to appear alongside the Ten Commandments.
The majority wrote that there were not enough facts to “permit judicial judgment rather than speculation” when evaluating potential First Amendment concerns.
A federal appeals court on Friday lifted a lower court block on Louisiana’s Ten Commandments classroom law, bringing the measure closer to taking effect. (John Bazemore/AP)
In a concurring opinion, Circuit Judge James Ho, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, wrote that the law was constitutional and “consistent with our founding traditions.”
“It is fully consistent with the Constitution, and what’s more, it reinforces our Founders’ firm belief that the children of America should be educated about the religious foundations and traditions of our country,” Ho said, adding that the law “affirms our Nation’s highest and most noble traditions.”
Circuit Judge James L. Dennis, an appointee of former President Bill Clinton, wrote in a dissenting opinion that displaying the Ten Commandments in classrooms would amount to “exposing children to government‑endorsed religion in a setting of compulsory attendance.”
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A federal appeals court ruling on Feb. 20 allows Louisiana’s Ten Commandments classroom mandate to proceed for now. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via Getty Images)
“That is precisely the kind of establishment the Framers anticipated and sought to prevent,” he added.
The ACLU of Louisiana and other groups representing the plaintiffs said they would pursue additional legal challenges to block the law.
“Today’s ruling is extremely disappointing and would unnecessarily force Louisiana’s public school families into a game of constitutional whack-a-mole in every school district,” the groups wrote in a joint-statement. “Longstanding judicial precedent makes clear that our clients need not submit to the very harms they are seeking to prevent before taking legal action to protect their rights.”
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Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry praised the appeals court decision on Feb. 20 allowing the Ten Commandments classroom law to move forward. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, file)
Republican Gov. Jeff Landry on Friday praised the court’s decision, writing on Facebook, “Common sense is making a comeback!”
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill issued a statement following the ruling, saying schools “should follow the law.”
“Don’t kill or steal shouldn’t be controversial. My office has issued clear guidance to our public schools on how to comply with the law, and we have created multiple examples of posters demonstrating how it can be applied constitutionally,” she said.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill said schools should follow the Ten Commandments display law after a federal appeals court lifted a lower court block on Feb. 20. (Chris Graythen/Getty Images)
Joseph Davis, an attorney representing Louisiana in the case, celebrated the court’s decision.
“If the ACLU had its way, every trace of religion would be scrubbed from the fabric of our public life,” he said in a statement. “That position is at odds with our nation’s traditions and our Constitution. We’re glad the Fifth Circuit has allowed Louisiana to display the Ten Commandments in its public school classrooms.”
Friday’s ruling came after the full court agreed to reconsider the case, months after a three-judge panel ruled the Louisiana law unconstitutional.
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A similar law in Arkansas faces a federal court challenge, while Texas implemented its own Ten Commandments classroom requirement last year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Southeast
Guy Fieri once had ‘nothing else to sign’ on the beach but postcards; now, he’s built a food TV empire
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MIAMI BEACH – Twenty years ago, a contestant named Guy Fieri on the second season of what was then “The Next Food Network Star” showed up at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival with little more than spiked hair and ambition.
“He came to that festival that year and was walking around signing postcards because he had nothing else to sign,” recalled Lee Brian Schrager, founder of the South Beach Wine & Food Festival and its New York City counterpart.
Today, Fieri is one of the most recognizable faces in food on television. But, in 2006, he was just another up-and-comer working a crowd on the sand.
Speaking to “Fox & Friends” from Miami Beach, Florida, Friday morning, Fieri said he wasn’t chasing TV fame.
“I was doing what I wanted to do,” he told Steve Doocy while walking the beach. “I wanted to be a great dad. I wanted to be a great husband. I wanted to be a chef. I wanted to own my own restaurant. So, I had accomplished the things I wanted in life and never really saw the other side of it.”
South Beach Wine & Food Festival founder Lee Brian Schrager and celebrity chef Guy Fieri pose for a photograph back in 2009. (South Beach Wine & Food Festival)
Two decades later, Fieri still comes back.
“He’s been part of our festival every year since he won ‘Food Network Star,’” Schrager told Fox News Digital.
The knack for spotting and elevating talent is part of the festival’s legacy as it marks its 25th year in Miami Beach.
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Schrager recalled a similar instinct with Giada De Laurentiis. When her agent suggested she might be ready the following year, Schrager pushed back.
“I said, ‘I don’t want her next year. I want her this year so she’ll remember where she got her big start,’” Schrager said.
Giada De Laurentiis, pictured here in 2015, was another celebrity chef who got her start at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. (Manny Hernandez/Getty Images)
Yet the festival doesn’t claim to have created celebrity chefs.
“We don’t take responsibility for turning anyone into a superstar,” Schrager told Fox News Digital. “We do take some credit for giving them a platform and putting them in front of their fans.”
“Rock stars became chefs and chefs became rock stars.”
Over the past 20 years, the platform has grown alongside the broader transformation of food culture.
“Rock stars became chefs and chefs became rock stars,” Schrager said.
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What began as a one-day wine event on the campus of Florida International University evolved after Schrager was tasked with reimagining it. His directive was to “make it better — not bigger, but better.”
Schrager had a solution.
The South Beach Wine & Food Festival is where chefs like Fieri “became rock stars,” said Schrager, founder of the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. (Jason Koerner/Getty Images)
“Move it to the beach, partner with the Food Network, get all their celebrities and make it more than just local,” Schrager said.
Today, the festival draws marquee names from the culinary world as well as from music and entertainment. Among those who showed up for Thursday night’s Burger Bash event were comedian Bert Kreischer and Cloud 23 hot sauce founder Brooklyn Peltz Beckham.
Chefs don’t get paid for appearances at the festival.
“If it’s somebody new, the first question out of their agent’s mouth is, ‘Oh, what’s the honorarium? What’s the fee?’ I’m like, ‘Zero,’” Schrager said.
Brooklyn Peltz Beckham is among the celebrities to attend the food festival for free. (Scott Roth/Invision/AP)
The model works, Schrager said, because the festival operates as a nonprofit benefiting FIU’s Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.
“Everyone’s doing it to support the cause, or they’re doing it because they want to do it,” Schrager said. “It’s not a bad place to be in the middle of winter.”
Schrager, left, appears along with Rachael Ray and Brooklyn Peltz Beckham onstage at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival’s Burger Bash. (Scott Roth/Invision/AP)
The festival has raised more than $50 million for student scholarships.
“To me, that’s why we do it,” Schrager said.
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Along the way, the festival has outlasted many imitators and weathered shifting food trends by staying nimble.
“We listened to the consumers,” Schrager said.
Fieri, left, and a shirtless Bert Kreischer share a moment onstage at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival. (Jason Koerner/Getty Images)
“There was never any ego involved in this festival.”
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He added, “Our goal was never to be the biggest.”
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“It happens that we turned out to be the biggest, but being the best, or at least doing our best, has always been the most important to me.”
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