House Republicans demand DHS provide docs on deportations of brothers of Laken Riley's accused killer

House Judiciary Committee Republicans are demanding that Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas provide documents about the previous deportations and other information on the two brothers of Laken Riley's accused killer – two men from Venezuela who were also in the United States illegally at the time of the Georgia nursing student's brutal slaying. 

Committee Chair Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, and Rep. Tom McClintock, R-Calif., who chairs the Subcommittee on Immigration, Integrity, Security and Enforcement, jointly penned a letter to Mayorkas on Monday requesting information on 29-year-old Diego Ibarra and 24-year-old Argenis Ibarra. Their brother, Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, allegedly murdered Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, while she was running on the University of Georgia campus on Feb. 22. The three men reportedly lived together in an apartment in Athens, Georgia, at the time of Riley's death.

Like his brother Jose, Diego Ibarra is allegedly affiliated with the dangerous, Venezuelan-based Tren de Aragua gang. 

In their letter, Jordan and McClintock cited how they already wrote to Mayorkas on Feb. 27 requesting DHS information on Riley's accused killer and now want the same on the two brothers.

LAKEN RILEY MURDER SUSPECT'S SECOND BROTHER WAS TWICE DEPORTED BEFORE SETTLING IN GEORGIA

"According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Biden Administration released [Jose] Ibarra into the United States in 2022 after he ‘entered the U.S. illegally from Venezuela,’ paroling him into the country despite his reported affiliation with the dangerous Tren de Aragua gang," Monday's letter says. "We now write to request the same information and documents regarding Ibarra’s brothers, Diego and Argenis Ibarra. According to ICE, both brothers entered the United States illegally near Eagle Pass, Texas, on April 3, 2023." 

Diego and Argenis were expelled by Border Patrol agents pursuant to Title 42 authorities but allegedly re-entered the country illegally on April 30, 2023. The letter states that despite attempting to bite a Border Patrol agent, Diego Ibarra was subsequently released on Alternatives to Detention (ATD) by ICE. Argenis Ibarra was released by ICE with a notice to appear in immigration court.

"Since his release, Diego Ibarra’s interactions with U.S. law enforcement officials reportedly include arrests for ‘failure to appear for a fingerprintable offense,’ driving under the influence, ‘speeding, failure to yield to an emergency vehicle, possession of an open container of alcohol, driving without a license," shoplifting, as well as a visit from police during which Diego Ibarra was accused of slapping his girlfriend in the face," the letter says. 

As the letter notes, Diego was most recently arrested as police in Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, were searching for Riley’s killer, after he produced a fake green card when asked for identification. Argenis was encountered by ICE on Feb. 23, 2024, in Athens, Georgia, while ICE was assisting the University of Georgia Police Department with their probe into Riley's murder.

LAKEN RILEY'S FATHER SAYS SUSPECT 'MIGHT NOT HAVE BEEN HERE' IF BORDER WAS SECURE

"Criminal aliens exploit vulnerabilities in our nation’s immigration system to the detriment of those in the United States," Jordan and McClintock wrote. "The Biden Administration’s border and immigration policies only increase the likelihood that criminal aliens will successfully enter and remain in the U.S. Pursuant to the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Committee on the Judiciary is authorized to conduct oversight of federal immigration policy and procedures."

To assist the committee with its continued oversight of federal immigration policy and procedures, the letter requests "case history information, including, but not limited to, the aliens’ immigration history, immigration benefits applications, the alien files (A-files) or consular files (including all consular notes), and immigration detention status and history." 

Mayorkas was also asked to provide "information regarding the time, date, and place of any and all of the aliens’ entries into the United States, "information regarding the aliens’ processing by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials, including whether CBP officials were alerted to derogatory information about the aliens and what questions were asked of the aliens during the screening process," "whether U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged an immigration detainer against the aliens," and "whether the aliens were on Alternatives to Detention (ATD) and, if so, the type of ATD, the dates for which the aliens were on ATD, and the date on which ICE removed the aliens from ATD." 

The letter asks that Mayorkas provide such information no later than 5:00 p.m. on April 1.  Reps. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee, and Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., ranking member of the Subcommittee on Immigration Integrity, Security, and Enforcement, were also cc'ed on the letter.