Student's Death Shares Similarities With Rachel Morin Case, 2 MD Women Attacked On Trails

HARFORD COUNTY, MD — As detectives continue to search for the suspect wanted in the death of 37-year-old Rachel Morin of Bel Air and details emerge about the death of a college student jogging on a trail in Georgia, Harford County Sheriff Jeffrey Gahler has warned people to change up their routines.

The Feb. 22 death of 22-year-old Augusta University junior and nursing student Laken Riley, who was jogging on a popular trail, prompted Gahler to speak out as investigators pursue all leads to solve Morin's homicide. Two women have been attacked this month while walking or jogging on trails in two other Maryland counties.

Authorities have charged Jose Ibarra with second-degree malice murder, kidnapping and other crimes in Riley's death. Georgia officials said he disfigured Riley's skull before dragging her to a secluded area in efforts to conceal her death. She was found dead in a wooded area behind a lake near the University of George's intramural fields, police reported.

Gahler told FOX News that when Ibarra, a 26-year-old immigrant from Venezuela who is in the country illegally, was arrested in the Riley case, investigators in Harford County were in contact with federal partners and officials in Georgia. He said that at this point, it doesn't appear Morin's case and Riley's case are related.

Authorities say there is no evidence the suspect in Riley's case knew her, and he was not a student at UGA. Riley attended UGA through the spring semester of 2023 before transferring to the Augusta University College of Nursing program. Augusta University and UGA are in a partnership that allows Augusta students to participate in UGA campus activities. A GoFundMe campaign has been set up for Riley’s memorial and to establish a scholarship fund in her honor.

According to officials, Riley was a UGA student through the Spring Semester 2023 before she transferred to the Augusta University College of Nursing program at Athens, where she was currently enrolled as a junior and on the Dean's List.

"We put out a lot of recommendations following Rachel's case. Break your routine. Don't be a creature of habit. Don't be on the trail … at that location at the same time every single day," Harford County Sheriff Gahler told FOX News. "Always, if you can, be with a friend. Go out when the trails or the parks are more crowded.

"I live on a section of the mine trail here in our county where Rachel was killed. The same trail. And I'll pass by younger ladies, older ladies… and they'll have their headsets in, and they won't know someone's beside them until you're beside them," Gahler added.

"Sadly, we're monitoring cases from across the country … anytime there's something tragic. And, this one, because of some of the parallels … you have a young woman out on a very safe trail … jogging, as it was in our case with Rachel Morin, mother of five who went out for a jog in a very safe area and was brutally killed," Gahler continued. "And, much like what we're hearing out of the Georgia case, our suspect is known to be Hispanic based on some of the DNA evidence that we've collected."

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A sketch was released in February of the suspect sought in Morin's homicide case, along with details never before released by the Harford County Sheriff's Office. Morin was killed along the Ma and Pa Trail in Bel Air in August 2023. Her boyfriend, Richard Tobin, reported her missing when she didn't return from her walk on the trail the night before.

Sheriff Gahler has said he believes the man who took Morin's life is a serial killer. According to investigators, the suspect is a Hispanic man in his early to mid-20s and estimated to be 5’9" and weighing around 160 pounds.

The Harford County Sheriff's Office shared in a podcast that the investigation has led them to seven different states with 10 federal, state and local agencies assisting. Thousands of bilingual flyers have been distributed in Maryland and California, where a DNA analysis of Morin's crime scene matched DNA found at a home invasion and assault of a young girl in Los Angeles.

Doorbell camera video provided by the Los Angeles Police Department captured a brief clip of that man leaving the scene of the reported home invasion and assault in California. Investigators have conducted more than 100 interviews and followed up on more than 1,000 tips.

Attack on Howard County Trail

A woman reported being grabbed and hit while jogging on a trail in Ellicott City's Centennial Park in the early morning hours March 11. Howard County Police are increasing their presence in Centennial Park after the 24-year-old woman reported the incident that happened around 6:30 a.m. Monday. She was able to run away and reach her vehicle. She suffered a minor injury and didn't require medical treatment, police said.

Kendelle Richardson frequently uses Centennial Park and told WBAL she's enhanced what she does to keep herself safe when on the trails.

"It's definitely really scary. I used to run here by myself all the time," she said. "I feel like I always have to have someone with me now when I'm walking or running. I don't want to run with AirPods or anything in like that, too, because it's just scary. That can happen in broad daylight in front of a public place in front of a lot of people."

Related:

Women Attacked On Park Trails In Howard, Frederick Counties: Police

Assault on Frederick County Trail

The attack in Centennial Park comes after a woman reported being attacked by a man while walking along the Canal Towpath Trail in Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park near Point of Rocks March 6. She told police she saw the man watch her begin her route, then he went to the trailhead and waited for her to return. The incident happened shortly after 4 p.m.

The Frederick-News Post reported that as the man approached the woman, she tried to call a friend on her phone, but he forced her to the ground and covered her nose and mouth with his hand. He told her to cooperate and she wouldn't get hurt.

"He kept saying that he wanted to get me up the hill, which was towards the river bank, and I didn't obviously want to go towards the riverbank," the woman told The Frederick-News Post. "I didn't want to go anywhere."

Maryland State Police Sgt. Kyle Gaines said state police arrived on the scene first, then were joined by National Park Service law enforcement rangers and Maryland Natural Resources Police.

Anyone with information about Morin's killing is asked to call the Harford County Sheriff's Office at 410-836-7788 or email a tip to investigators at rmtips@harfordsheriff.org. A $35,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction is still being offered. To learn more about contributing to the Rachel Morin Reward Fund, individuals can visit the law firm's dedicated website at https://ricelawmd.com/reward.

Anyone with information about the assault in Howard County should contact police at 410-313-STOP or HCPDcrimetips@howardcountymd.gov. Anyone with information about the attack in Frederick County should call 888-653-0009 or email nps_isb@nps.gov. People can also submit an anonymous tip by visiting go.nps.gov/SubmitATip.

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