PASSING THE BUCK ALERT: Criminal Activity of Laken Riley’s Accused Killer was Never Flagged to the Feds, Mayorkas Says; Mayorkas Pushes Back GOP Tying Georgia Student’s Death to Immigration: ‘One individual is responsible’

Criminal activity of Laken Riley’s accused killer was never flagged to the feds, Mayorkas says:

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas claimed that the federal government was not appraised by state and local governments about the criminal activity of Laken Riley’s accused killer.

Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, an undocumented Venezuelan migrant accused of murdering Riley, was initially apprehended by US Border Patrol on Sept. 8, 2022, before being released on parole. Afterward, he was allegedly involved in two criminal incidents before the alleged slaying of Riley.

“Different cities have different levels of cooperation. We were not notified in this instance,” Mayorkas told CBS’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday.

The two incidents for which Ibarra was arrested include one for illegally driving a scooter in New York without a license in August and another in connection with a shoplifting case out of Georgia.

Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student at the University of Georgia in Athens, was violently murdered during her morning run on Feb. 22, according to authorities.

Several cities, including the Big Apple, have “sanctuary city” policies that limit cooperation with federal authorities enforcing US immigration laws.

Athens officials have publicly debated about whether or not it’s a sanctuary city.

Mayorkas was initially slow to claim that the federal government was not notified of Ibarra’s activities during his “Face the Nation” appearance. It took repeated questions from host Margaret Brennan to admit that there was no cooperation.

Many Republican critics have groused about how Ibarra was released via parole, a process used when Border Patrol is overwhelmed, and that he was not deported after allegedly committing crimes before Riley’s murder. —>READ MORE HERE

Mayorkas pushes back GOP tying Georgia student’s death to immigration: ‘One individual is responsible’:

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas on Sunday sought to clarify only “one individual is responsible” for the death of a Georgia student last month after Republicans linked the alleged suspect — a Venezuelan citizen — to the Biden administration’s handling of the border.

Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student at Augusta University’s Athens Campus, was found dead last month after her roommate reported she did not return from a run in the wooded area of the University of Georgia campus. Jose Ibarra, a 26-year-old, was later arrested and charged with murder in connection to her death.

U.S. Customs and Border Enforcement (UCBP) said Ibarra entered the country illegally in September 2022 near El Paso, Texas, from Mexico and was released for further processing after being detained.

When asked Sunday by CBS “Face The Nation” anchor Margaret Brennan if Ibarra should have been deported given his alleged crimes in other states after his release from detainment, Mayorkas said, “First and foremost, an absolute tragedy and our hearts break and our prayers are with the family, number one.”

“Number two and importantly as a prosecutor, having prosecuted violent crime and other crimes for 12 years, one individual is responsible for the murder, and that is the murderer. And we work very closely with state and local law enforcement to ensure that individuals who pose a threat to public safety are indeed our higher priority for detention and removal,” he continued. —>READ MORE HERE

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