Moriah Wilson

Records

Moriah was a rising star in off-road cycling. In the year leading up to her death, she had begun posting impressive results at some of the sport’s most competitive events. Just days before her final race, she left her engineering job at Specialized to pursue bike racing full-time. In the cycling world, everyone knew her as Mo.

She arrived in Austin on May 10, 2022, after making a last-minute decision to compete in Gravel Locos, a 155-mile race in Hico. Her friend Cash picked her up at the airport, and the two spent the evening together in Austin.

The next day, Moriah texted fellow pro cyclist Colin Strickland to see if he wanted to ride. Strickland was dating Kaitlin Armstrong at the time. He and Moriah had briefly dated in October 2021 during a break in his relationship with Armstrong.

Moments after Colin Strickland dropped Moriah Wilson off at her friend’s apartment in Austin on the night of May 11, a neighbor’s surveillance camera captured Kaitlin Armstrong’s SUV arriving at the residence, according to arrest-warrant allegations. Authorities later found Wilson inside the apartment with multiple gunshot wounds.

On the night of May 11, 2022, professional cyclist Anna Moriah “Mo” Wilson was fatally shot at a friend’s home in Austin, Texas. Police later alleged that Kaitlin Marie Armstrong committed the crime out of jealousy connected to Wilson’s relationship history with Colin Strickland.

Police found Anna Moriah Wilson dead on the bathroom floor, with at least three gunshot wounds, two to the head and one to the chest. Shell casings marked “9mm JAG” were recovered from the scene. Investigators later tied the recovered shell casings to a handgun found at the home Armstrong shared with Strickland.

After the homicide, Armstrong traveled out of Texas. Investigators later alleged that she flew to New York, then boarded a flight from New Jersey to Costa Rica using another person’s passport. When authorities located Armstrong in Costa Rica, she had altered her appearance.

• October 2021 Strickland met Moriah Wilson at a cycling race in Bentonville, Arkansas. He and Kaitlin Armstrong broke up shortly after the race. Days later, Strickland learned Wilson was in Austin for another race and they began dating.
• November 2021 Armstrong allegedly contacted Wilson directly to confront her about the relationship, which Strickland described as strange and unnerving. Wilson eventually left Austin for another race, and she and Strickland parted on good but casual terms.
• December 2021 Strickland and Armstrong rekindled their romantic relationship. Strickland later characterized his ongoing contact with Wilson as professional and friendly. To avoid conflict with Armstrong, he changed Wilson’s name in his phone to “Christine Wall” and deleted message history.
• May 10, 2022 Moriah Wilson arrived in Austin, Texas, ahead of the Gravel Locos race. A friend who lived on Maple Avenue picked her up from the airport.
• May 11, 2022, 9:00 AM Armstrong and Strickland left their home area for a bike ride.
• May 11, 2022, 12:41 PM Moriah texted Colin Strickland asking if he had plans that night because her friend had dinner plans. The message came to Colin’s phone from “Christine Wall.”
• May 11, 2022, 1:31 PM Moriah left the Maple Avenue residence for a bike ride.
• May 11, 2022, 3:15 PM Colin texted Mo Wilson, “Want to go swimming? Maybe swimming & a beverage.”
• May 11, 2022, 5:30 PM Wilson’s friend left the Maple Avenue residence. Mo Wilson texted that she was meeting Colin Strickland to go swimming.
• May 11, 2022, 5:40 PM Colin Strickland arrived to pick up Moriah.
• May 11, 2022, 5:55 PM Moriah Wilson entered the door-lock code as she left.
• May 11, 2022, 6:09 PM Strickland and Wilson’s phones arrived at Deep Eddy Pool.
• May 11, 2022, 6:57 PM Strickland and Wilson went to Pool Burger.
• May 11, 2022, 7:00 PM Colin ordered food and drinks at Pool Burger.
• May 11, 2022, 8:16 PM Strickland and Wilson left Pool Burger on his motorcycle.
• May 11, 2022, 8:26 PM A vehicle believed to be Armstrong’s drove near Maple Avenue.
• May 11, 2022, 8:35 PM Colin Strickland dropped Wilson off at the Maple Avenue residence.
• May 11, 2022, 8:36 PM Mo Wilson entered the residence using her unique electronic door code. Strickland texted Armstrong a misleading message about dropping flowers to a friend and his phone battery dying.
• May 11, 2022, 8:37 PM Armstrong’s black SUV was seen approaching and slowing near the Maple Avenue residence.
• May 11, 2022, 8:48 PM Surveillance video captured Strickland riding about eight miles away on the South I-35 frontage road.
• May 11, 2022, 9:21 PM Strickland was at his residence on Fort Clark Drive, working on bicycles in the garage, when Armstrong arrived home in the black SUV.
• May 11, 2022, 9:54 PM Wilson’s friend returned home and found the front door unlocked.
• May 11, 2022, 9:56 PM The friend discovered Wilson unresponsive on the bathroom floor and called 911.
• May 11, 2022, 10:10 PM First responders pronounced Wilson deceased at the scene.
• May 12, 2022 The Travis County Medical Examiner performed an autopsy and determined the cause of death was multiple gunshot wounds. The manner of death was homicide.
• May 12, 2022, 9:20 AM Police contacted Colin Strickland. He gave a formal interview and admitted knowing Wilson and their brief romantic history.
• May 12, 2022, 1:14 PM Kaitlin Armstrong was questioned by Austin police after officers discovered an open misdemeanor warrant. Officers showed her surveillance footage of her SUV near the crime scene. Armstrong reportedly said it did not look good and offered no explanation for the vehicle’s presence. She was mistakenly released because of a discrepancy involving a prior warrant date of birth.
• May 13, 2022 Strickland’s last contact with Kaitlin Armstrong occurred on May 13. Armstrong sold her black Jeep Grand Cherokee to CarMax for $12,200.
• May 14, 2022, 12:30 PM Armstrong was at Austin-Bergstrom Airport and boarded a flight to Houston, then to LaGuardia in New York.
• May 17, 2022 Ballistics testing showed that Armstrong’s recovered gun matched shell casings at the crime scene. An arrest warrant was issued at 10:40 PM for first-degree murder.
• May 18, 2022, 5:09 PM Armstrong used a fraudulent passport to board United Airlines Flight 1222 from Newark, New Jersey, to Costa Rica.
• May 20, 2022 Colin Strickland issued a public statement. U.S. Marshals designated Armstrong a fugitive and requested public assistance.
• May 21, 2022 Wilson’s family released a statement clarifying that those closest to Moriah understood she was not in a romantic relationship at the time of her death.
• May 23, 2022 A memorial ride was held for Mo Wilson.
• May 25, 2022 Austin police held a press conference on Wilson’s death and explained that Armstrong had been mistakenly released from custody because the date of birth in the system did not match the warrant.
• June 6, 2022 The U.S. Marshals Service announced the murder case was upgraded in status, allowing additional funding, manpower, and specialized resources.
• June 23, 2022 U.S. Marshals announced they found Armstrong’s black Jeep Grand Cherokee. Authorities said Armstrong sold it to a CarMax dealership in south Austin for $12,200.
• June 29, 2022 Kaitlin Armstrong was captured at a hostel in Santa Teresa Beach, Costa Rica, ending a 43-day manhunt.
• June 30, 2022 Armstrong’s bond was set at $3.5 million.
• July 2, 2022 Armstrong was extradited to the United States and held in Harris County Jail in Houston.
• July 5, 2022 Armstrong was extradited to Austin, Texas, formally arrested, and held on $3.5 million bond.
• July 8, 2022 Armstrong filed a motion asserting her right to a speedy trial.
• July 20, 2022 Armstrong pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder and requested a speedy trial.
• August 17, 2022 Armstrong’s attorneys filed a motion to suppress evidence, arguing that she was illegally interrogated by Austin Police on May 12, 2022.
• November 9, 2022 A pretrial ruling found Armstrong’s APD interview admissible. Trial was set for June 26, 2023.
• October 11, 2023 Armstrong attempted to escape custody while being escorted from a medical appointment. She was apprehended about 10 minutes later.
• October 12, 2023 A new felony charge was filed after the attempted escape.
• October 30, 2023 The jury was selected for trial.
• November 1, 2023 The murder trial began in Austin with opening statements.
• November 16, 2023 A jury found Armstrong guilty of murdering Moriah Wilson.
• November 17, 2023 Armstrong was sentenced to 90 years in prison and fined $10,000. Wilson’s family delivered victim impact statements.
• November 27, 2023 Armstrong began the appeals process to challenge her conviction and sentence.

Kaitlin Armstrong

Records

Kaitlin Marie Armstrong grew up in Livonia, Michigan. Her parents divorced when she was a child, and her mother later struggled with alcoholism. According to a childhood friend, Armstrong was also the victim of abuse as a child.

Armstrong graduated from high school in 2005 and then attended Eastern Michigan University. She eventually became a licensed realtor, though her biggest passion was teaching yoga. In 2018, Armstrong attended a four-week yoga teacher training course in Bali, Indonesia.

After Moriah Wilson was killed, Armstrong became the subject of a fugitive investigation. She deleted social media accounts, left Texas, traveled through New York and New Jersey, and ultimately fled to Costa Rica before she was captured.