ATHENS, Ga. - An Athens judge has denied a motion by the man charged in the death of an Augusta University nursing student to suppress certain pieces of evidence in the case.

Jose Ibarra, 26, was charged with killing Laken Riley on Feb. 22 in a wooded area behind Lake Herrick on the University of Georgia campus.

Ibarra's motion claimed two cellphones, social media information, location data and "genetic and physical information" were seized without probable cause.

EARLIER COVERAGE:

The University of Georgia Police Department, Georgia Bureau of Investigation, FBI and other law enforcement agencies obtained multiple search warrants in connection with the case, searching 10 electronic devices and collecting "buccal swabs and photographs of marks" from Ibarra, social media information from Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram and location data, the order for denial states.

According to the documents, the evidence "must be suppressed as fruit of the poisonous tree."

Judge H. Patrick Haggard found that the warrants were "valid and properly executed" and that Ibarra had not specified what evidence should be suppressed.

The motion also claimed that Ibarra was "detained without reasonable suspicion" when officers entered his Athens apartment without a warrant the day after Riley was found dead.

Ibarra was arrested after being found during a "protective sweep" of his apartment. Another person had allowed a police officer to enter the apartment to turn off a stove, and the officer performed the protective sweep as he entered. The officer found Ibarra during the sweep.

Haggard found that Ibarra was "lawfully detained and arrested."

Haggard's ruling determined the protective sweep was appropriate "in order to be certain no other individuals were in the home and to prevent the possible destruction of evidence."