The illegal immigrant charged with murdering Laken Riley was “hunting” for women when he encountered the 22-year-old during her morning jog and bashed her skull in when she fought off his attempted sexual assault,

Jose Ibarra's attorney pointed to a lack of evidence his client attempted to sexually assault Laken Riley, the 22-year-old nursing student he's accused of killing.

Police spoke to the defendant, Jose Ibarra, who is an undocumented migrant, at his apartment in Athens on Feb. 23, while investigating Laken Riley's death.

The slaying of the Georgia nursing student has been a focal point in the national discussion about immigration, a major presidential campaign issue.

The suspect accused of killing 22-year-old Laken Riley was "hunting" for women on the University of Georgia's campus the day the nursing student was found brutally murdered on the school grounds, a prosecutor said Friday during opening statements in the bench trial.

Georgia prosecutors placed Jose Ibarra, the suspect accused of murdering Augusta University nursing student Laken Riley, at the scene of the crime on the morning of Feb. 22.