Armstrong fled the country after the murder, getting plastic surgery before she was apprehended in Costa Rica; the victim, pro cyclist Anna “Mo” Wilson, had briefly dated Armstrong’s boyfriend while they were on a break.
Kaitlin Armstrong, the yoga instructor charged with killing pro cyclist Anna “Mo” Wilson, has been found guilty.
The verdict was reached in an Austin, Texas courtroom on Thursday, after just a few hours of deliberation; Armstrong entered a not guilty plea back in July 2022.
Wilson had been staying at friend’s home in Austin after traveling from San Francisco for a local race and was found bleeding and unconscious in the residence on May 11, 2022. She was pronounced dead on the scene.
U.S. Department of Justice/Austin Police Department
Kaitlin Armstrong Pleads Not Guilty to First Degree Murder of Pro Cyclist Moriah Wilson
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After Wilson’s death was ruled a homicide, Armstrong was briefly detained by police — before being released due to an invalid warrant. The next day, she reportedly sold her Jeep Grand Cherokee — which was seen in surveillance footage near where Wilson was killed the night of the murders — for 12,200 dollars, before hopping onto a flight to the East Coast. Per the US Marshals, she then used a fraudulent passport to catch another plane from Newark to San Jose, Costa Rica on May 18 — the day after Austin PD issued a homicide warrant for her arrest.
She was apprehended at a hostel in Santa Teresa Beach in Provincia de Puntarenas, before being returned to the States. Armstrong reportedly had a nose job in that time and had dyed her hair brunette.
The case was dubbed a “love triangle” after it was discovered Wilson briefly dated Armstrong’s boyfriend, 35-year-old professional cyclist Colin Strickland, while the two were on a break.
He told the Austin American-Statesman that he got back together with Armstrong after their fling, claiming that his relationship with Wilson then became a platonic one. Per the arrest affidavit, he said he did go swimming and grabbed dinner with Wilson the night of her murder — and hid it from Armstrong.
He also told authorities he had changed Wilson’s name in his phone because Armstrong had blocked it and said he deleted texts with Wilson so she wouldn’t find them. During trial, however, prosecutors said Armstrong still had access to his email and Instagram and knew they were still in contact.
Wilson’s family later released a statement saying they felt it was “important to clarify that at the time of her death, those closest to her clearly understood, directly from Moriah, that she was not in a romantic relationship with anyone.”
KXAN/Austin Police Department
Video Shows Alleged Escape Attempt of Woman Accused of Murdering Pro Cyclist
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During the trial, prosecutors played up the love triangle bit, saying Armstrong shot Wilson in a jealous rage, hitting both her head and heart. They also claimed she tracked Wilson’s location with a fitness app used to keep track of her rides.
Armstrong’s attorney, however, said she had been unfairly portrayed as “a jealous psycho.” As for why she made a run for it, he argued she was “scared” of the investigation and the actual killer — suggesting someone else could have killed Wilson.
Shortly before her trial began, in October 2023, Armstrong made an escape attempt while officers escorted her to a doctor’s appointment. Armstrong allegedly made a run for it as she was being taken back to a patrol vehicle after the appointment and was quickly apprehended.
She faces up to life in prison and will be sentenced at a later date.
