'She Was An Angel': Slain GA Student's Dad Speaks Out: Reports

ATLANTA, GA — The father of a slain Augusta University nursing student pleaded for the detainment and deportation of undocumented immigrants during a Wednesday hearing of the Georgia Senate, according to a media report.

Jason Riley, father of 22-year-old Laken Riley who police say was killed on Feb. 22 by a Venezuelan citizen, made the call to Gov. Brian Kemp while presenting a resolution before the Senate, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

“Gov. Kemp, please declare an invasion to detain and deport criminal illegals so we can prevent future families from those tragedies,” Jason Riley said during his speech, per the AJC.

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Laken Riley, who was a student at the Augusta University College of Nursing campus at Athens, died at the University of Georgia.

She was reported missing by someone who said their friend had gone for an early morning run at UGA's Intramural Fields and did not return home as expected, UGA officials said in the past.

Officers found Riley unconscious in a forest behind Lake Herrick, officials said. She had visible injuries and died at the scene.

Jose Ibarra, the 26-year-old man accused in her death, reportedly disfigured her skull and used an object as a weapon in her killing.

Ibarra was charged on suspicion of failure to appear for finger-printable charge, concealing the death of another person, kidnapping, obstructing/hindering a person from making an emergency telephone call, false imprisonment, aggravated assault, aggravated battery and two counts of second-degree malice murder, authorities said in the past.

RELATED: After GA Student's Death, Kemp Wants Answers From Biden Administration

According to the AJC, Ibarra unlawfully entered the U.S. in 2022 and was granted permission to stay in the country while pursuing his immigration case.

Jason Riley recalled his daughter as being a strong person with academic excellence in his first public interview with NBC's TODAY show.

"I wish I would have been there to protect her," he said in the interview released Monday, per NBC News. "I wish it would have been me."

Laken Riley planned to work at a children's hospital after graduating college, her father told NBC.

Jason Riley noted his wish to not have his daughter's death politicized.

This comes after Kemp sent a demanding letter to President Joe Biden regarding Ibarra's immigration status, and after Biden's mention of Laken Riley during his State of the Union address prompted remarks from former President Donald Trump.

"I think it's being used politically to get those votes," Jason Riley told NBC. "It makes me angry. I feel like, you know, they're just using my daughter’s name for that. And she was much better than that, and she should be raised up for the person that she is. She was an angel.”

Read more via the AJC and NBC.