Mollie Tibbetts was American University of Iowa student Know all about her in this article as like her Family, Net Worth, Parents, Cause of Death, Investigation and Legal proceedings
| Bio | |
| Name | Mollie Tibbetts |
| Birthdate ( Age) | 8 May 1998 |
| Place of Birth | San Francisco, California, United States |
| Nationality | American |
| Parents | Rob Tibbetts, Laura Calderwood |
| Education | University of Iowa |
| Profession | Grinnell Regional Medical Center |
| Net Worth | Not Known |
| Last Update | August 2021 |
On July 18, 2018, American University of Iowa student Mollie Cecilia Tibbetts disappeared while jogging near her home in Brooklyn, Iowa. A month later, police identified 24-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera as a suspect in connection with the disappearance; surveillance footage showed Rivera’s car following Tibbetts on her jog. Rivera led police to the body of Tibbetts in a Poweshiek County cornfield on August 21. He was charged with first-degree murder. On May 28, 2021, Rivera was found guilty of first-degree murder.On August 30, 2021, Rivera was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Mollie Tibbetts and her dad, Rob.
Rivera’s immigration status became a politicized issue after police, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement indicated that he had been in the United States illegally. The Trump administration and some Republicans, including Iowa governor Kim Reynolds, used the murder to argue for more restrictive immigration policies. Tibbetts’s family denounced efforts to use Tibbetts’s death for political purposes.
Early Life and Family
Mollie Cecilia Tibbetts was born on May 8, 1998, in San Francisco, California, to Rob Tibbetts and Laura Tibbetts. When she was in the second grade, her parents divorced, and she moved to Iowa with her mother and two siblings.
Her father kept a close relationship with the children, and he last saw Mollie at his wedding in June 2018.At the time of her disappearance, she was a resident of Brooklyn, Iowa, a small town about 70 miles (110 km) east of Des Moines, and a psychology major at the University of Iowa.She worked at a children’s day camp at Grinnell Regional Medical Center and was preparing for her sophomore year in college when she disappeared.
Missing Report
On July 18, 2018, Tibbetts, a former cross country runner, left the home of her boyfriend’s brother in Brooklyn for an evening jog.She was last seen at approximately 7:30 p.m. CDT and was reported missing by her family when she did not show up for work the following day.According to police, her last confirmed communication was with her boyfriend of three years, shortly before leaving for her jog.Her boyfriend was out of town for work in Dubuque, Iowa, over 130 miles (210 km) away.He told investigators he received a Snapchat message from her later in the evening that appeared to show her indoors.
Investigation and Legal proceedings
Over the next several weeks, police in multiple states investigated hundreds of leads in the case,including an unconfirmed sighting at a truck stop in Kearney, Missouri(later confirmed to have been false),but were not able to locate Tibbetts. They received over 2,300 tips and conducted over 500 interviews during the course of the investigation.As she was known to always wear her Fitbit activity tracker, police attempted to use its data to help find her
On August 21, police in Iowa announced that a body had been found in Poweshiek County,where Tibbetts’ hometown of Brooklyn is located; the body was identified as Tibbetts’ in an autopsy that was conducted two days later by the Iowa State Medical Examiner.They had been led to the site by 24-year-old suspect Cristhian Bahena Rivera.On August 23, the Iowa State Medical Examiner performed an autopsy and recorded the cause of death as “multiple sharp force injuries” and the manner as homicide.
On August 22, 2018, Rivera was charged with first-degree murder.The judge raised his bond from $1 million to $5 million when the prosecutor noted him as a flight risk.On August 24, Rivera changed his legal counsel. Chad and Jennifer Frese, a married couple who work for the same law firm, were privately retained by Rivera’s relatives to represent him.On September 19, Rivera pleaded not guilty.
On May 17, 2021, Rivera’s criminal trial began, after many delays due to other court proceedings and to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.On May 28, 2021, Rivera was found guilty of first degree murder. The judge ordered him to be held without bond.Rivera faced a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without parole.The state of Iowa has no death penalty.On August 30, 2021, Rivera was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
