Iowa’s Republican governor, facing a tough re-election challenge in November, blasted an immigration system that “allowed a predator like this to live in our community.” And Iowa’s two GOP U.S. senators called the death a tragedy that “could have been prevented.”

Cristhian Bahena Rivera, 24, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of the 20-year-old Tibbetts, whose July 18 disappearance set off a massive search involving state and federal authorities. Iowa’s Republican governor, facing a tough re-election challenge in November, blasted an immigration system that “allowed a predator like this to live in our community.” And Iowa’s two GOP U.S. senators called the death a tragedy that “could have been prevented.”

Rivera led investigators early Tuesday to a body believed to be Tibbetts in a cornfield about 12 mile southeast of Brooklyn, Iowa, where she was last seen going for an evening run, Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation special agent Rick Rahn said. Investigators visited the farm Monday to speak with employees. I can just tell you that it seemed that he followed her, seemed to be drawn to her on that particular day, for whatever reason he chose to abduct her," Rahn told reporters at a news conference outside the sheriff's office in Montezuma, where Rivera was being held on $1 million US cash-only bond. Trump alluded to the case at a rally in West Virginia on Tuesday: “You heard about today with the illegal alien coming in, very sadly, from Mexico and you saw what happened to that incredible, beautiful young woman,” he said, shaking his head. The news that the highly publicized and gruesome crime was allegedly committed by a person in the country illegally drew immediate outrage. Iowa's two Republican senators also described Tibbetts' death as a tragedy "that could have been prevented," and Iowa Gov. "We are angry that a broken immigration system allowed a predator like this to live in our community, and we will do all we can to bring justice to Mollie's killer," Reynolds, a Republican, said in a statement. “Cristhian has complied with his documented status since arriving in the USA as a minor.”

Representatives for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the claim by Rivera’s attorneys. During a news conference Tuesday, authorities said Rivera was employed and lived in the area for four to seven years, but they would not disclose his employer. WATCH: Iowa authorities say Cristhian Rivera was charged with murder in the death of Mollie Tibbetts

In a statement late Tuesday, Yarrabee Farms said Rivera had worked at its farms for the last four years and was an employee in good standing. It was at that point that the 24-year-old says that he “blacked out.”

Surveillance footage led police to their suspect, according to Rahn. According to court documents, the suspect said in an interview that when he approached Tibbetts, she pulled out her cell phone and told Rivera she was going to "call the police" and that caused him to get angry. On Tuesday, Rivera -- who confessed to following her as she ran on a country road -- led authorities to the field where a body believed to be hers was buried under corn stalks, officials said. He said an autopsy would be performed on the body Wednesday by the state medical examiner’s office, which would assist investigators in understanding whether Tibbetts had been assaulted or tried to fight him off. The July disappearance of Tibbetts, who attended the University of Iowa, touched off a massive search and international headlines.
Cristhian Bahena Rivera, a Mexican man accused of killing University of Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts after entering the U.S. illegally, appears in a Poweshiek County court for arraignment on first-degree murder. His bail is set at US$5 million. If released by local police, he may be arrested by ICE.