Mollie Tibbetts trial live: Cristhian Bahena Rivera’s murder trial begins

Opening statements and testimony in the trial for Cristhian Bahena Rivera, accused in the death of 20-year-old Mollie Tibbetts in July 2018, began Wednesday.

Watch a replay of Day 1 from the courtroom in the video player above. The trial will resume Thursday soon after the jury arrives at 8:30 a.m. Watch it live here on TheGazette.com.

Tibbetts’ boyfriend, Dalton Jack, and his brother took the stand Wednesday morning, and the prosecution called more witnesses in the afternoon.

The trial, taking place at the Scott County Courthouse, is expected to last through next week.

Bahena Rivera, 26, who may have entered the United States from Mexico illegally a decade ago, is accused of fatally stabbing Tibbetts while she ran through her hometown of Brooklyn, Iowa, and hiding her body in a cornfield.

The disappearance of Tibbetts, who was studying at the University of Iowa to become a child psychologist, prompted a massive search involving hundreds of officers and volunteers.

Read more:

• Mollie Tibbetts murder: A timeline, from disappearance to the trial

• Jury selected in Mollie Tibbetts murder trial

• Prosecutor says trial in Iowa student's death won't be easy