'Our employee was not who he said he was,' says Mollie Tibbetts suspect's employer

Linh Ta | The Des Moines Register

Show Caption Hide Caption Langs receive threats after former employee charged in Mollie Tibbetts' death Dane and Craig Lang say they received threats after revealing they employed Cristhian Bahena Rivera, the man charged in the murder of Mollie Tibbetts.

DES MOINES, Iowa – When the Lang family watched the news about Mollie Tibbetts unfold Tuesday, a familiar face flashed on the screen.

They were shocked. The face of the suspect was familiar to them as one of their employees at Yarrabee Farms, but the name that went with the picture was completely different.

"What we learned within the last 24 hours is that our employee was not who he said he was," said Dane Lang, manager of Yarrabee Farms.

Cristhian Bahena Rivera, the 24-year-old immigrant accused of abducting and killing Tibbetts, allegedly used a different name and provided false identification when he applied for employment at the farm just outside of Brooklyn, Iowa, his employer said Wednesday.

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Rivera worked at Yarrabee Farms in rural Poweshiek County for four years, Lang said. Yarrabee Farms is owned by multiple generations of the Lang family, including Craig Lang, former Farm Bureau President and prominent Iowa Republican.

Rivera was charged with first-degree murder Tuesday in the July 18 disappearance of Tibbetts, whose remains were found in a cornfield in Poweshiek County. A criminal complaint released Tuesday said Rivera directed law enforcement to Tibbetts' body.

Rivera worked on day-to-day operations with the cows. He was introduced to the Lang family and gained employment there through a former girlfriend.

He also lived on the property in a mobile home, said Mitch Mortvedt, assistant director of the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

"We continue to cooperate with the investigation, and we have provided information about our former employee, including his hiring records, to authorities," Craig Lang said during a press conference at the farm Wednesday. "There will be plenty of time later to discuss immigration. However, now is not that time."

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Dane Lang is Craig's son. He said Rivera provided a state-issued government ID and Social Security number when applying for employment. The information is required to file a Form I-9, which verifies the identity and employment eligibility of a person in the U.S.

As a voluntary second verification step, the business put Rivera's information through the Social Security Administration’s number verification service, but Dane Lang said he and others assumed it was E-Verify.gov.

E-verify.gov allows employers to check if the information on a Form I-9 matches Social Security Administration and Department of Homeland Security records.

Employment verification officials consider E-Verify a more robust backgrounding system because it includes immigration status and eligibility to work in the United States. A check of only a Social Security number verifies that the number, name and birth date an employee provided match information that exists in the federal Social Security database.

Dane Lang said Rivera provided a different name when he applied for employment, but he would not share it on Wednesday, citing the investigation.

"This employee was considered in good standing," Lang said. Rivera showed up to work on time, cooperated with the other employees and showed up every day, he said.

Over the last month, the younger Lang said he didn't notice any changes in Rivera's behavior. He said he always worked well with his colleagues.

"I wish I had seen a difference, but I didn't," Lang said.

About 10 full-time and part-time employees work on the farm, and all current employees now will go through the E-Verify background check. Dane Lang would not confirm whether there were any non-U.S. citizens employed at the farm.

He said his employees are a part of the community and some of their kids have gone on to become homecoming king or a valedictorian.

At least 100 threatening voicemail messages have been sent to Dane Lang since Tuesday, he said. People have threatened to burn down buildings and even kill his dog after learning Rivera was employed at the farm.

"This is a really scary situation," he said. "And the unfortunate thing is, people are paying attention to me and we’re forgetting about the heartbroken family in Brooklyn and the heartbroken community."

Contributing: Donnelle Eller of the Des Moines Register