The grief-stricken stepfather of murdered nursing student Laken Riley choked back tears as he read a letter to her “future husband” in court on Wednesday after her killer was convicted on all counts on Wednesday.
John Phillips emotionally read one of the 22-year-old’s final diary entries during the sentencing of Laken’s killer, illegal immigrant and Tren de Aragua gangster Jose Ibarra, who was later given a life sentence without parole.
“To my future husband, as foolish as I feel writing this, my old group leader once recommended it, so here I am,” Phillips began reading. “I want you to know that I’m thinking of you.”
He continued, “I work every day to become the best woman I can be. I am working on my current relationships to best prepare myself for ours and our children one day.
“I focus on God and what he defines as a faithful Christian wife so that I can best embody those characteristics,” the entry continued.
She then noted in the note that she placed her “complete faith and trust” in God, knowing that her future husband had been chosen by him.
She also expressed hope that she and her future husband would raise their family as “God-fearing Christians.”
“I can’t wait to spend the rest of our lives loving you the best way I know how,” Phillips read shakily as he choked back tears. “I pray that you know and feel the importance of our love and hope to our relationship. Whatever challenges we face, I pray that our trust in God and for each other overcomes the obstacle.”
The journal entry ends with, “May our relationship last forever, your future wife, Laeken.”
Phillips noted that he could list the things that made Laken “such a great person,” but said he felt one of her last journal entries, written on Dec. 17, 2023, “says it best.”
“Laeken’s life was abundant and exceptionally promising,” he said as he broke down. “And she was a shining beacon in the lives of everyone who knew her.”
A tearful Phillips then told the judge, “That, Your Honor, was our beautiful Laken. That, Your Honor, is just a glimpse of what was tragically and brutally taken from her and from us that day.”
Riley was brutally murdered on February 22 while jogging on the campus of the University of Georgia, not far from Augusta University, where she received her nursing degree.
Ibarra, 26, tried to sexually assault Riley but ended up hitting her head with a rock and choking her as she fought back.
Prosecutors said Riley bravely fought for her life for as many as 18 minutes, making deep scratches on Ibarra’s neck and wrists before the much larger man finally overpowered her.
Those scratches – as well as his DNA later found under her fingernails – ultimately became key pieces of evidence that helped convict her killer.
Ibarra was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison without parole.
