Mollie Tibbetts’ accused murderer pleads not guilty

Christian Bahena Rivera, the farmhand accused of murdering American college student Mollie Tibbetts, has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

Earlier today, Rivera appeared before District Court Judge Joel Yates at a courthouse in Iowa, with his charge read to him by a translator.

The 24-year-old’s attorney, Chad Frese, told the court his client had a “limited understand of English and limited education”.

Rivera also waived his right to have a trial within 90 days, with Yates scheduling his trial for April 16 2019. The entire process lasted 10 minutes.

Tibbetts’ disappearance from Brooklyn, Iowa quickly became one of America’s most talked-about missing persons cases.

Tibbetts was last seen on July 18 when she went set off for her regular evening run through her hometown, which has less than 2000 residents.

When she failed to show up for work the next morning, concerned colleagues reached out to her loved ones, who contacted the local police.

Within days, the student’s disappearance triggered a massive investigation which lasted five weeks.

The search ended after Rivera, an illegal Mexican immigrant, led investigators to her body on August 22.

Suspicions were raised when he was caught driving back and forth near where Tibbetts was jogging on July 18.

Rivera told investigators he had pursued Tibbetts in his car while she was jogging on that night, before he got out and started running alongside her.

When Tibbetts told Rivera she was going to call the police, he "panicked and got mad," according to a criminal complaint.

A preliminary report from the autopsy on Tibbetts' body determined her death was a "homicide resulting from multiple sharp force injuries," according to the the Iowa State Medical Examiner.

If convicted, Rivera faces life in prison without the possibility of parole.