Man Charged with Mollie Tibbetts Murder Illegal

Authorities charged Cristhian Bathena Rivera–an illegal immigrant from Mexico–with the murder of Mollie Tibbetts Tuesday.

Fox News reports:

Authorities said Rivera, who lived in the rural Poweshiek County area, is being held on a federal immigration detainer. He’s believed to have been in the area for four to seven years.

The body of Tibbetts, a 20-year-old University of Iowa student, was found Tuesday in a field covered with corn stalks. Her father and two sources confirmed to Fox News on Tuesday morning that Tibbetts was found dead; investigators said later in the day they were working to formally identify the body.

Investigators said they used surveillance footage to track down Rivera. The video showed Tibbetts jogging in a rural area near her hometown of Brooklyn, and also showed Rivera’s car. She was last seen around 7:30 p.m. on July 18 after she went for a jog around a neighborhood in Brooklyn.

Tibbetts’ family pleaded for her safe return and had remained hopeful she would be found alive. Her father, Rob, previously told Fox News that “somebody knows something.”

Mollie Tibbetts had been missing for over a month.

(Video h/t Fox News)