WQAD Denise Hnytka 37m ·
I want to lay out everything we know so far about the Mollie Tibbetts/Cristhian Bahena Rivera/Xavior Harrelson developments, as of today (7/15).
First and foremost, a jury convicted Cristhian Bahena Rivera of murdering Mollie Tibbetts in May. The jury ultimately believed that he followed Mollie, approached her while she was on her nightly run, and got angry that she threatened to call police. They believe he stabbed her and left her body in a cornfield, where she lay for 6 weeks. That has not changed. He still faces life in prison without parole. But his defense attorneys, Chad and Jennifer Frese are trying to get him a new trial, based on some new information.
The Freses also believe that new information includes a connection to a missing boy in Poweshiek County, 11-year-old Xavior Harrelson. At today's court hearing, they asked a judge to help expand on that information to back up their request for a new trial.
Here's the breakdown of their argument.
1. During Bahena Rivera's trial, an inmate came forward to report that he was told by a man named Gavin Jones that he (Jones) had killed Mollie Tibbetts. The inmate says Jones confessed he worked in concert with another unidentified man to kidnap Mollie, kill her, and then frame another man for the murder. Jones claimed he saw Mollie bound inside a "trap house" and that she was killed because the search for her "got too big, too quick". The state told the defense about the new development and offered to stop the trial to investigate. The Freses determined it wasn't enough at the time and the trial moved forward, ending in a conviction. The state says the Freses must now have "buyer's remorse" if they want to revisit the Jones story.
2. The defense would also learn about a second woman who had come forward that same day, with a similar admission. She also named Gavin Jones as the real killer of Mollie. The woman claimed she had dated Jones, and he confessed that he raped and killed Mollie.
The Freses believe these stories help corroborate what Bahena Rivera said to the jury on the stand - that he was kidnapped by two mystery men who killed Mollie, and they left him with her body. He admitted to the jury that he dumped her in the cornfield, and that's why he was able to lead police to her body when they questioned him.
So how does this lead to Xavior Harrelson? Keep reading.
3. The Freses say they should have learned about investigations into sex trafficking and so called "trap houses" when they were preparing for trial. They recently learned about a search of a home linked to a man named James Lowe. In their court filings, the Freses write that Lowe was alleged to have been operating a sex trafficking ring out of New Sharon, Iowa in the summer of 2018. The search warrant references a woman's report that she was held at a "trap house", tortured, and sexually abused. Lowe was also living with Sarah Harrelson at one point in 2019. Sarah is Xavior's mom. The Freses claim Lowe was among the last people to see Xavior before he disappeared. Lowe is in jail right now on federal gun charges.
Jennifer Frese sums it up like this: "Gavin Jones - trap house. Trap house - James Lowe - Xavior Harrelson."
The state rejects this theory. Assistant Iowa AG Scott Brown called it "unconscionable" that the Freses would bring Xavior Harrelson's name into the Tibbetts case. He stressed that Xavior is an open investigation, and no suspects have ever been publicly named. He also told the judge that it's not in the rules for the state to have to track down leads post-trial. He stands by the jury's conviction of Cristhian Bahena Rivera.
To be very clear, the names provided here were all read in open court, but these people are not charged in any way with anything that happened to Mollie or Xavior. We don't know where Xavior is, and there's still hope among many that he could be found alive. Orange ribbons in his honor were everywhere in Montezuma today, and his missing person posters are in every store window. It's also nearly 3 years to the day that Mollie Tibbetts disappeared - July 18, 2018. A big group of people was in court today to represent Mollie. They want peace too.
Next steps. The judge plans to give a written ruling by end of week regarding the defense request for new information (motion to compel). Regardless of how he rules, he is still planning to hear the request for new trial, scheduled for July 27th.
https://www.wqad.com/.../526-4732169d-1a4c-4174-ae13.
