Kaitlin Armstrong has been sentenced to 90 years in prison for the murder of her alleged love rival Moriah “Mo” Wilson.
A jury returned the sentencing verdict after around three and a half hours of deliberation on Thursday in Austin, Texas. Armstrong will also be required to pay a fine of $10,000.The two women were reportedly involved in a love triangle with Ms Armstrong’s then on-and-off boyfriend and Wilson’s fellow cyclist Colin Strickland.
Armstrong, guilty
In the aftermath of the May 2022 shooting, Ms Armstrong fled to Costa Rica and was only captured fivm weeks later.
The state rested its case on Wednesday morning after introducing testimony from Mr Strickland, friends of Ms Armstrong, and law enforcement personnel. The defence called experts who sought to discredit the state’s DNA and ballistics evidence.D
uring closing arguments, prosecutors pointed out what they suggested was overwhelming evidence linking Ms Armstrong to the crime, and asked jurors to ignore the “rabbit holes” the defence had asked them to go down.
Meanwhile, Ms Armstrong’s attorneys accused police of a sloppy investigation that too quickly focused on her as the sole suspect.
A month before her death, in May 2022, Wilson beat 30 of the top gravel racing cyclists in the United States to claim the Fuego 80k at the Sea Otter Classic in Monterey, California.
Wilson followed up that victory with a win at the Belgian Waffle Ride in San Diego on 30 April 2022 and arrived in Austin on 10 May as the favourite to win the Gravel Locos in Hico, a few days later.
She had been staying at her friend Caitlin Cash’s apartment on Maple Avenue, East Austin, and on 11 May she arranged to meet fellow pro-cyclist Colin Strickland, who according to a police affidavit she had an on-again, off-again relationship with when he and his then girlfriend Armstrong were on a hiatus.
The pair went swimming at the Deep Eddy Pool public aquatic centre in Austin before going for a meal at nearby Pool Burger, Mr Strickland, 35, told investigators. He dropped Wilson off at her friend’s home at around 8.30pm
Wilson was later found dead with multiple gunshot wounds by Ms Cash.
