Iowa’s state Court of Appeals upheld the murder conviction of Christhian Bahena Rivera, convicted in 2021 of the 2018 killing of jogger Mollie Tibbets.

Rivera appealed his conviction, claiming that some statements he made to police were made before he was read his Miranda rights, KCRG reported.

But the appeals court disagreed, noting that Rivera made the statements in question before he was in custody.

Tibbetts, 20, was out for a run in her hometown of Brooklyn in July 2021 when she disappeared, as CrimeOnline reported. Rivera told investigators that he spotted Tibbetts jogging, and slowed down and started following her in his black Chevrolet Malibu.

He then admitted he blacked out and woke up with blood in his car and Tibbetts stuffed inside his trunk. He led police to her body.

Rivera’s sentencing was delayed when witnesses claimed that someone else may have killed Tibbetts, but a judge ruled that the testimony wasn’t credible.

Rivera was subsequently sentenced to life without parole.

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[Featured image: Mollie Tibbetts/Handout]