Connolly Huth, Laken’s roommate for two years, called the slain 22-year-old her “best friend forever” in a powerful impact statement which she gave wearing one of her dear departed friend’s shirts.

She recalled how the two used to run together, and how even that everyday activity has been permanently sullied in her absence.

“I can no longer imagine running without constantly looking over my shoulder wondering if I could be next,” she said, adding she deals with guilt “every day” that it wasn't her Ibarra encountered on the University of Georgia running trail that day.

Huth said she turned 22 on Feb. 21, and recalled waking up early that day to her home festooned with streamers, balloons and presents, all set up by Laken.

But that birthday joy quickly turned to grief the next day when Ibarra attacked and brutally murdered her best friend.

Judge Patrick Haggard briefly spoke before handing Venezuelan illegal immigrant Jose Ibarra a sentence of life without parole, acknowledging the tremendous grief of Laken Riley’s family and friends.

“I acknowledge there is no such thing as closure. There will be no closure,” he said, calling it a “tragedy.”

He then asked Ibarra to stand. The killer looked down at the floor as the judge rattled off his punishment for each of the 10 counts.

Ibarra did not change facial expression as the years piled up, totaling two life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus 27 years, with all sentences to be served consecutively.

Tren de Aragua gang member Jose Ibarra was sentenced to life without parole Wednesday for the vicious murder of promising nursing student Laken Riley in a case that ignited a national firestorm over the Biden administration’s open border policy and coddling of illegal immigrants.

The sentencing was meted out a little more than an hour after Judge Patrick Haggard announced the guilty verdict on all charges on the fourth day of the Athens, Georgia, murder trial after hearing from 29 witnesses called by the prosecution.

Prosecutors played a video for the court that showed the gut-wrenching moment Laken Riley's family learned she was dead.

“It’s my daughter,” says her mom, Allyson Phillips, as she breaks down in tears on the side of road, overcome with grief.

“Is she alive?” she can be seen asking an officer moments before collapsing on the ground in anguish.

“That’s what they endured, and that’s how it was on that day when they came here to look for their daughter,” prosecutor Sheila Ross said after showing the heartbreaking, 60-second clip.

The family bawled in the courtroom as the video was shown.

President-elect Donald Trump took to his Truth Social platform this afternoon about an hour after Laken Riley's killer was found guilty, saying in part, "Our hearts will always be with you."

"It is time to secure our Border and remove these criminals and thugs from our Country, so nothing like this can happen again," he wrote.

New statement from President Donald J. Trump: pic.twitter.com/QwMdAqmUXI

— Alex Bruesewitz 🇺🇸 (@alexbruesewitz) November 20, 2024

Laken Riley's father, Jason Riley, told the court that he faces painful reminders that his beloved daughter is gone every day.

“I will never hear her laugh again, never see her smile, never hold her hand or feel her hug. She was taken from us, from her family, from her friends, from her future. Our world has been torn apart and no matter what happens here today, nothing will ever bring her back.”

He said he’s “haunted” by the fact that he wasn’t able to protect her, and the fear she must have felt in her final moments.

“I will spend the rest of my life navigating this grief … but I will never forget her. I will keep her memory alive,” he said, choking back tears.

“I hope justice is served not only for me as her father, but for her because she deserves it.”

Next, Laken’s sister, Lauren Phillips, addressed the court, sobbing as she spoke.

“There was nothing I wouldn't do for Laken and nothing she wouldn't do for me. Laken was my biggest protector,” she said, adding she’s been lost since she was “senselessly stripped from our lives by Jose Antonio Ibarra.”

She tearfully called her sister's killer "a predator" and "the epitome of evil," before pleading with the judge for the stiffest sentence possible.

“Jose Antonio Ibarra has completely ruined my life,” she said, adding she hopes he gets a sentence that will “ruin his."

Laken’s stepfather, John Phillips, then spoke, calling her “a shining beacon in the life of everyone who knew her and ever came into contact with her,” he said tearfully.

“I’m so proud of Laken, and the beautiful person she was,” he said, before referencing one of her last journal entries which he read, “to my future husband … may our relationship last forever, your future wife, Laken,” he said, barely able to get through the words without crying.

“That, your honor, was our beautiful Laken. A glimpse of what was tragically and brutally taken from us that day,” he said, before echoing his wife’s plea to the judge to give Ibarra a life sentence.

Laken Riley’s family delivered passionate victim impact statements in the Athens, Georgia, courtroom where gang member Jose Ibarra was found guilty of her murder about an hour earlier.

“Jose Ibarra took no pity on my scared, panicked and struggling child,” said her mother, Allyson Phillips, her voice catching in her throat.

“There is no end to the pain, suffering and loss. On that horrific day, my precious daughter was attacked, beaten and shown no mercy,” she said.

“She fought for her life in dignity, and to save herself from being brutally raped. This sick, twisted, and evil coward showed no regard for Laken and human life. We’re asking the same be done to him,” she said, raising her voice at times.

She remembered her daughter as a “kind and thoughtful child of God” who was active in her community.

The tearful mother called Ibarra a “monster” who took away her “best friend,” while sobbing.

“He ripped away every beautiful memory we will be able to make with her again. This horrific individual robbed us of all our hopes and dreams for Laken,” she said before addressing the judge.

“Your honor, I’m asking you to give Jose Ibarra the same thing he gave us when he … showed no mercy when she was begging for her life. Give this monster life without parole so that he never has the chance to hurt anyone else ever again.”

Jose Ibarra was convicted on all counts for the murder of Georgia nursing student Laken Riley on Wednesday. But he will not face the death penalty in Georgia.

Western Judicial District Attorney Deborah Gonzalez said she would seek a sentence of life without parole in the case.

Georgia has the death penalty — with the last execution in the state taking place in March.

However, Gonzalez said she did not think that pursuing the death penalty was in the interest of "justice" in the Riley case.

“Our utmost duty is to ensure that justice is served and that the victim’s family is an integral part of the deliberation process. We understand that there will be those outside this office who will disagree with our decision and seek to exploit this case for political gain. However, the integrity of our judicial process and the pursuit of justice must always transcend political considerations,” Gonzalez said, according to WRDW.

Ibarra, an illegal immigrant and Tren de Aragua gang member, waived his right to a jury trial. He was found guilty of all charges by a judge in an Athens, Georgia, courtroom Wednesday and is set to be sentenced at 12:30 p.m. 

Jose Ibarra, the illegal immigrant and Tren de Aragua gang member accused of viciously murdering 22-year-old coed Laken Riley, was found guilty of all charges in an Athens, Georgia, courtroom Wednesday.

Judge Patrick Haggard handed down the guilty verdicts on a range of charges, returning to the bench just 19 minutes after the prosecution and defense presented their closing arguments.

Sobs filled the gallery as the verdicts were read, Riley's family held hands and wept while Ibarra remained motionless seated in the courtroom.

Closing arguments are underway as defense attorneys representing illegal immigrant and accused killer and gang member Jose Ibarra have declined to call more witnesses.

Prosecutor Sheila Ross recounted the facts of the case for about 45 minutes in her closing argument, calling the evidence in the case against Ibarra "overwhelming."

She pointed to his roommates testifying to his guilt, Riley's DNA being found under his fingernails and his fingerprint being found on her cellphone.

"Quite frankly: She got him. She scratched him," Ross said as Riley's mother, Allyson Phillips, wept in court.

She said Ibarra's response when confronted by police about the scratches was "that of a monstrously guilty individual."

She continued in grisly detail, "he put huge holes in her head with a rock and he did it more than once. There is no reason for him to do that except to silence her forever."

Ross showed surveillance footage of Ibarra disposing of a bloody jacket in a dumpster near the crime scene.

"He threw away that jacket because he knew exactly what was on it. It was his blood and her blood … so he knew he had to get rid of it," she said.

"He threw away those items because he knew he killed her."

The defense tried to pin the vicious killing on Jose's brother Diego, arguing he wore a hat with Riley's blood on it. But Ross shot that down, saying he'd need "magic pixie dust" or "Harry Potter's invisibility cloak" to have pulled off the murder.