Cristhian Bahena Rivera, the 24-year-old Mexican migrant who confessed to killing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts, has fired his lawyer who defended him against President Trump’s claims he was in the US illegally.
Two new lawyers are expected to replace attorney Allan Richards, who called President Trump ‘sad and sorry’ last week for publicly stating Rivera ‘came in from Mexico illegally’ and renewing his call for stronger border security.
Attorneys Chad and Jennifer Frese filed paperwork Sunday to represent Rivera, however Richards says the family hired him and he hasn’t spoken with his client about being replaced.
Rivera faces first-degree murder charges after leading police to Mollie Tibbetts’ lifeless body last week that had been left stabbed to death since her July 18 disappearance.
Cristhian Behana Rivera, 24, fired his defense attorney Allan Richards and has hired two new lawyers
Richards called President Trump ‘sad and sorry’ last week for publicly stating Rivera ‘came in from Mexico illegally’ and pushing for stronger border security
Rivera is charged with first-degree murder in the death of University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts
Jennifer Frese confirmed Monday that the two have been privately retained to represent Rivera.
On Tuesday, Rivera led police to Mollie Tibbetts’ body. She had been missing since July 18
Trump jumped at the opportunity to use Rivera as an example of why the US needs a border wall and stricter immigration policies – branding the current ones ‘pathetic’.
The dairy worker was arrested last Monday when police traced him through surveillance footage that showed his car following Mollie.
When Rivera, a father-of-one, was approached by police he went willingly to participate in an interview where he confessed to attacking Mollie, putting her body in the trunk of his car and driving her to a field 10 miles away.
It was later revealed that Rivera was an illegal migrant farm worker from Mexico who used a fake ID to pass background checks, his employers say.
Dane Lang, co-owner of the farm, previously said that Rivera had worked there for four years and passed all background checks, despite police saying he had been in the US illegally the entire time.
Lang later revealed that Rivera used a fake ID and social security number to cheat the Social Security Administration verification system, which the farm used.
Richards is pictured defending his client in last week’s hearing. Trump jumped at the opportunity to use Rivera as an example of why the US needs a border wall and stricter immigration policies
The news of his immigrant status prompted the president to immediately post a clip demanding tougher immigration rules.
In the video filmed on the White House lawn, he said that Mollie, ‘an incredible young woman’ had been killed by someone who ‘came in from Mexico illegally.’
‘We need the wall, we need our immigration laws changed, we need our border laws changed,’ he said. ‘We need Republicans to do it because Democrats aren’t going to do it.
To that, Rivera’s now-former lawyer Richards said: ‘Sad and sorry Trump has weighed in on this matter in national media which will poison the entire possible pool of jury members.’