Mollie Tibbetts went missing over well over a month ago and investigators have now charged an illegal for her murder:
KPIX – Investigators say a murder charge has been filed against a man who led them to remains believed to be the body of 20-year-old college student Mollie Tibbetts, who disappeared from her small hometown in central Iowa one month ago. The body was discovered in a field in rural Poweshiek County, which includes Tibbetts’ hometown of Brooklyn, Iowa, the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation said in a press release.
Officials say the suspect, Cristhian Bahena Rivera, is in the country illegally. Investigators believe Rivera followed Tibbetts on July 18 and abducted her as she was out for a jog. Surveillance video showed a car that investigators traced back to Rivera, investigators said.
A cause of death remains unclear. An autopsy is scheduled for Wednesday.
Hundreds of people have been interviewed by investigators, who have been inundated with tips from the public during the five weeks that Tibbetts was missing.
Tibbetts was last seen July 18 in Brooklyn, a rural town of about 1,400 people, as she took a routine evening jog. IShe was reported missing by her family the next day, after she didn’t show up for work at a day camp for children.
Here’s a photo of Rivera:
Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24, was charged with first-degree murder in the death of 20-year-old Mollie Tibbets. pic.twitter.com/f4hEQXLW9s
— KRCG 13 (@KRCG13) August 21, 2018
And he’s been here for at least several years…
Cristhian Bahena Rivera charged with 1st Degree Murder in killing of Mollie Tibbetts. Rivera has been living outside Brooklyn, IA illegally for several years. Police say he admitted to following Mollie during her run and blacked out when she told him to leave or she’d call police pic.twitter.com/Drm18Dkmbb
— Elias Johnson (@ejohnsonNEWS) August 21, 2018
We’ll update with more as it develops.