A VIDEO showing Mollie Tibbetts’ alleged murderer being interrogated and apparently confessing to her killing has been revealed at his trial today.
During the interrogation, Cristhian Rivera led police to the cornfield where Mollie’s body was found, telling them, “I brought you here, didn’t I? So that means that I did it.”
The defense, who presented the interrogation video as evidence, argued that Rivera appeared to be asleep during a portion of the questioning.
Pamela Romero, who interrogated Rivera, said on the witness stand that she was not aware Rivera was asleep, but a look at the interrogation transcript showed she had told the accused man, “You fell asleep.”
Pictures presented at Cristhian Rivera’s trial also appear to show bloodstains on the inside of his car’s trunk and back bumper.
According to the testimony of a crime scene investigator, a fishing pole and football in the trunk also tested “presumptive positive” for blood.
Mollie Tibbetts was seen in bombshell surveillance footage jogging as she’s followed by a sinister black Chevrolet Malibu moments before she was abducted.
On day two of the trial, the focus was on the footage given to police by a neighbor in which the black car could be seen following around 20 seconds behind the Iowa jogger on July 18, 2018.
Opening statements began Wednesday in the trial of Rivera, who allegedly murdered Tibbetts, 20, and dumped her body in a field.
Rivera, a Mexican national who came illegally to the US as a teenager, is charged with first-degree murder for the 2018 slaying of the 20-year-old University of Iowa student.
The 26-year-old is participating in the trial through a Spanish-speaking interpreter.
Rivera’s arrest inflamed anger over illegal immigration, with then- President Donald Trump calling Rivera a killer who exploited lax immigration laws and Iowa’s governor calling him a predator.
The case deepened anxieties about random violence against women, since Tibbetts was attacked while out for exercise in her small town of Brooklyn, Iowa.
She never made it back to the house where she was dog sitting for her boyfriend and his brother.
The 20-year-old was studying to become a child psychologist.
CRIME LAB EXAMINER SAYS BLOOD FOUND ON MOLLIE TIBBETTS’ CLOTHING
During the third day of Cristhian Rivera’s trial for the murder of Mollie Tibbetts, Iowa State Crime Lab examiner Tara Scott testified that Tibbetts’ underwear tested positive for blood, according to KCCI-8.
Tibbetts’ underwear and shorts were strewn across the corn field where her body was found.
A stained napkin from Rivera’s home also tested positive for blood, the examiner said.
WHAT WAS MOLLIE TIBBETTS’ CAUSE OF DEATH?
Poweshiek County Attorney Bart Klaver revealed that an autopsy found Tibbetts had been stabbed seven to 12 times in the chest, ribs, neck, and skull.
He said police later searched the field where they found a body later identified as Tibbetts “decomposed beyond recognition.”
Klaver alleged that Rivera told cops he took Mollie’s body and dumped it in the cornfield covered in stalks.
WHEN WAS MOLLIE’S DISAPPEARANCE REPORTED?
After failing to reach out to Mollie on social media, Mollie’s boyfriend, Dalton Jack, and his older brother called the cops.
Jack recalled that he had tried to call her cellphone after she disappeared but got no answer so he went back to the house to “check on her.”
He noted that they didn’t lock their door so he went in and let the dog out of the basement before asking his neighbors if they had noticed anything unusual.
Mollie was reportedly housesitting for her boyfriend Dalton Jack and his older brother Blake as they were out of town on separate construction jobs.
VIDEO SHOWS CAR FOLLOWING MOLLIE TIBBETTS
Video footage presented during Cristhian Rivera’s trial shows a black car following around 20 seconds behind the murdered Mollie Tibbetts as she jogged.
Rivera was identified as a suspect after the surveillance video revealed a his Chevy Malibu appearing to circle Tibbetts as she ran.
WHAT DID CRISTHIAN RIVERA TELL POLICE?
Rivera told police that Mollie Tibbetts was “hot” and “attractive.”
Officer Pamela Romero testified during day three of the trial that Rivera had also brought police to the scene of the crime, where he confessed, “I brought you here, didn’t I? So that means that I did it. I don’t remember how I did it.”
Poweshiek County Attorney Bart Klaver told the court earlier that Rivera admitted he had seen Mollie the night she disappeared.
WHY WAS CRISTHIAN RIVERA’S TRIAL MOVED?
Cristhian Rivera’s trial was moved to a county 100 miles away from the site of the murder after defense lawyers noted local residents had “very strong opinions” about Rivera’s guilt and Mexican nationality.
Legal experts told Associated Press that they believe jurors who admit a bias against noncitizens or non-English speakers could be disqualified.
They added that Trump supporters who remember his descriptions of Rivera as an “illegal alien” who killed “an incredible, beautiful young woman” may also be dismissed.
WHEN WAS THE BODY OF MOLLIE TIBBETTS FOUND?
Mollie Tibbetts’ body was found a month after her disappearance and an extensive search by police.
Her disappearance sparked a massive search involving hundreds of law enforcement and volunteers.
Rivera was identified as a suspect a month later after surveillance video revealed a dark Chevy Malibu appearing to circle Tibbetts as she ran.
WHERE WAS MOLLIE TIBBETTS’ BODY?
Mollie Tibbetts’ body was found in a corn field near the small, 1,700 person town of Brooklyn, Iowa.
An autopsy report revealed Tibbets died of sharp force injuries after she was stabbed.
The murder weapon has not been discovered but blood found in the trunk of Rivera’s vehicle matched Tibbetts’.
MOLLIE TIBBETTS’ CLOTHING FOUND SCATTERED
Items of Mollie Tibbetts’ clothing were found scattered around her body in the corn field when she was found, according to crime scene investigator Amy Johnson’s testimony during the trial.
Her killer, Cristhian Rivera, reportedly led police to the place where he had hidden her body under leaves.
DID CRISTHIAN RIVERA CONFESS?
Investigators interviewed Rivera at the dairy farm where he was working.
He initially denied involvement in her death.
Yet after hours of interrogation, he confessed to approaching Tibbetts as she ran, killing her in a panic when she threatened to call the cops, and hiding her body in a cornfield.
Rivera reportedly led police to the place where he had hidden her body under leaves.
WHO WAS MOLLIE TIBBETTS?
Mollie Tibbetts was a 20-year-old University of Iowa student who was studying to become a child psychologist.
In 2018, her alleged killer Cristhian Bahena Rivera stabbed her to death and dumped her body in a field.
The brutal attack occurred in July 2018 while she was going for her routine run in the small, 1,700 person town of Brooklyn, Iowa.
CONCERNS ARISE OF POTENTIALLY BIASED JURY
Rivera will face a jury that is mostly white and that takes place in a state which Trump carried in the 2020 election, The Associated Press noted in coverage of the case.
“This case has a double-edged problem with picking fair and impartial jurors. They can be overcome, but they are problems,” said former federal judge Mark Bennett.
Tibbett’s family spoke out about her death being used to promote immigration policies that she would have opposed.
They slammed politicians using immigrants as “scapegoats” and said they should be treated as “neighbors.”
BODY WAS COVERED WITH CORNSTALKS
Mollie Tibbetts’ body was covered with cornstalks when it was found in an Iowa cornfield, according to testimony given on day three of the trial from crime scene investigator Amy Johnson.
The body was found with bright tennis shoes visible.
Tibbetts was brutally attacked and killed in July 2018 while going for her routine run in the small, 1,700 person town of Brooklyn, Iowa.
WHY DO LAWYERS CLAIM IT WILL BE HARD TO ENSURE A FAIR TRIAL?
legal experts have claimed that ensuring a fair trial for the farmhand will be difficult after former President Donald Trump weighed in on the case.
Rivera, a father of one, was blasted by Trump as a criminal who exploited lax immigration laws and was used as an example by the ex-president as he pushed for harsher immigration policies ahead of the 2018 midterm elections.
Trump branded Rivera, who had no previous criminal history, as guilty almost immediately, with Iowa’s governor Kim Reynolds also calling him a “predator.”
CRIME SCENE TECH AMY JOHNSON SAYS BLOOD STAINS IN RIVERA’S CAR
In her testimony during the third day of the trial, the crime scene investigator who looked at the inside of Cristhian Rivera’s car said she found blood stains.
Amy Johnson, the crime scene tech, said a fishing pole and football in the trunk tested “positive presumptive for blood.”
She also indicated that a bloodstain was found on the back bumper of the car.
OFFICER THAT HEARD CONFESSION RETURNS TO TRIAL
The officer that received Cristhian Rivera’ confession to the murder of Mollie Tibbetts has returned to give testimony in the trial on Friday, KCCI-8 reports.
Pamela Romero, a former officer for the Iowa City PD, interviewed Rivera in his native language of Spanish.
She said Rivera told her of the location of Tibbetts’ body.
WHAT IS THE PROSECUTOR’S CASE BASED ON?
In their opening statement Wednesday, prosecutors in the Mollie Tibbetts trial detailed the facts of the case they would base their arguments on.
The three items include surveillance footage of a black Chevy Malibu in the area where Tibbetts was last seen, the presence of the victim’s blood inside the car, and Rivera’s admissions made to police.
Rivera initially denied involvement in her death.
Yet after hours of interrogation, he confessed to approaching Tibbetts as she ran, killing her in a panic when she threatened to call the cops, and hiding her body in a cornfield.
WHEN WAS MOLLIE TIBBETTS LAST SEEN?
Tibbetts was last seen jogging at 7:30 pm on the evening of July 18 in 2018, according to People.
Her boyfriend, Dalton Jack, said during the trial that Tibbetts had sent him a snapchat shortly before she disappeared.
Afterwards, hundreds searched for Tibbetts before her body was finally found in a corn field.
WHO IS DALTON JACK?
Dalton Jack was Mollie Tibbetts’ longtime boyfriend.
During the first day of alleged murderer Cristhian Rivera’s trial, Jack said he had nothing to do with the disappearance and was not in town when it happened.
According to Yahoo News, Jack said he is heartbroken by her death.
VIDEO SHOWS RIVERA ‘SLEEPING’ DURING QUESTIONING
A video shown by Defense Attorney Jennifer Frese seems to show Rivera was sleeping during the interview in which he confessed to the murder.
Pamela Romero, the former officer who was questioning Rivera in the video, said she did not notice he was sleeping, and that it did not affect their interaction.
However, a transcript of the interview shows that Romero told Rivera during the interrogation, “You fell asleep.”
MOLLIE TIBBETTS STABBED MULTIPLE TIMES
An attorney revealed during Rivera’s trial that an autopsy found Tibbetts had been stabbed seven to 12 times in the chest, ribs, neck, and skull.
Rivera told cops he took Mollie’s body and dumped it in the cornfield covered in stalks, according to Poweshiek County Attorney Bart Klaver.
After hours of interrogation, Rivera confessed to approaching Tibbetts as she ran, killing her in a panic when she threatened to call the cops, and hiding her body in a cornfield.
HOW DID POLICE FIND TIBBETTS’ BODY?
Cristhian Rivera, the alleged murderer of Mollie Tibbetts, led authorities to her body.
The body was found in a cornfield located at 2478 460th Avenue at about 4:30 am on August 21 of 2018, KCCI Des Moines reports.
Although Rivera remembered the location of the murder, he told police he did not remember committing the violent act.
WHAT DOES THE VIDEO FOOTAGE REVEAL?
The surveillance video shows Tibbetts jogging as she is followed by her alleged killer Cristhian Rivera.
Rivera was identified as a suspect a month later after surveillance video revealed a dark Chevy Malibu appearing to circle Tibbetts as she ran.
On the second day of the trial, footage given to cops was examined in which a black car could be seen following around 20 seconds behind the jogger.
DID CRISTHIAN RIVERA CONFESS TO THE MURDER?
Cristhian Rivera confessed that he killed Mollie Tibbetts to authorities, but said he could not remember how he did it.
Although he initially denied any involvement, he eventually admitted he had driven past her while she was out jogging, describing her as “attractive” and “hot.”
He also led authorities to the cornfield where the murder occurred.
SHERIFF’S DEPUTY TESTIFIES IN DAY TWO OF TRIAL
Sheriff’s Deputy Steve Kivi testified in the second day of the trial of Cristhian Rivera for the murder of Mollie Tibbetts.
Kivi said he saw a car matching the description of a vehicle of interest in the case on August 16 after the murder.
The man in the car turned out to be Cristhian Rivera.
“”I said, ‘Hey, can I talk to you for a second?”‘ Kivi described the encounter, ABC reports.
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This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk
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