Undocumented immigrant charged with murder of Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts

Man arrested for murder of Mollie Tibbetts
(Image credit: Screenshot/YouTube/AP)

On Tuesday, police in Iowa arrested Cristhian Rivera, 24, charging him with first-degree murder for the death of University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts. Tibbetts, 20, disappeared while jogging on the evening of July 16, sparking a search involving the FBI and state and local investigators. Rivera led police to a body in a cornfield on Tuesday morning, according to court documents, and police believe the body is Tibbetts'. Rivera's motive is unclear, Rick Rahn, special agent in charge at the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, said at a news conference, but the suspect says he got mad and blacked out when Tibbetts threatened to call the police as he was following her on her run. Rivera is an undocumented Mexican national who has lived in Iowa for at least four years. Tibbetts would have been a sophomore this fall. You can learn more below. Peter Weber

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Peter Weber, The Week US

Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.