As Kaitlin Armstrong was sentenced to 90 years in prison for murdering love rival Moriah Wilson, the victim’s father slammed the man in the middle of the deadly love triangle.
Armstrong, 35, who lived with Colin Strickland, gunned down Moriah ‘Mo’ Wilson after Strickland and Wilson went to dinner on May 11, 2022.
Strickland dated Wilson during a brief break up with Armstrong, but admitted he kept in touch with Wilson, changing her name in his phone and lying to Armstrong about it.
Outside the Austin, Texas court house where Armstrong was sentenced, Wilson’s father – Eric – said: ‘This sad story is the perfect example of why integrity and honesty are crucial in our personal relationships and how dishonesty can often lead to unintended consequences.
‘Selfish manipulation, jealousy and hatred never lead to positive outcomes.’
Outside the Austin, Texas court house where Kaitlin Armstrong was sentenced, Wilson’s father – Eric – said: ‘This sad story is the perfect example of why integrity and honesty are crucial in our personal relationships and how dishonesty can often lead to unintended consequences.
Kaitlin Armstrong, 35, showed no emotion has she was sentenced to 90 years in prison by a Texas jury for the slaying of her love rival Moriah Wilson
Authorities say Armstrong fell into a jealous rage and shot Wilson, 25, left, dead after she went for a swim and dinner with Armstrong’s boyfriend, professional cycler Colin Strickland, right
Armstrong was sentenced to 90 years in prison by a Texas jury, and was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine Friday.
‘As a family, we believe justice has been served,’ Wilson’s father, Eric, stated.
‘There really are no winners here. This not a time for celebration, but a time for prayer. Time to pray for our family, our friends, and the Armstrong family and their friends.’
The Wilsons added they would work to keep Wilson’s memory alive through the Moriah Wilson Foundation, which is dedicated to expanding access to recreation, sports, and educational programs.
On Thursday, it took the jury less than two hours to find Armstrong guilty. The former yoga teacher stalked Wilson and Strickland as they went for a swim and to dinner on May 11, 2022 in Austin.
After Strickland dropped Wilson off at a friend’s apartment and left, Armstrong made her way into the home and shot Wilson in the head twice, once in the heart and once in the hand – a wound the medical examiner said meant Wilson likely put her hands up to try to shield herself from the gunfire.
Moriah Wilson’s parents, Karen and Eric, embrace her friend Caitlin Cash following Armstrong’s sentencing
Kaitlin Armstrong on the day she was found guilty of murdering Moriah, ‘Mo’ Wilson, a rising star in the cycling world who had dated Armstrong’s boyfriend
State attorney Rickey Jones references Anna Moriah Wilson’s defensive wounds as he addresses the jury during the sentencing portion of Kaitlin Armstrong’s murder trial in Austin, Texas
Prosecutors had urged the jury to give Armstrong to at least 40 years as she will be eligible for parole after serving half of her sentence or 30 years, whichever comes first.
Wilson’s friend and mother addressed Armstrong in court after the sentencing, with the victim calling Armstrong’s actions ‘selfish and cowardly.’
‘You never chose to face her woman to woman in a civil conversation,’ Karen Wilson said looking directly at her daughter’s killer.
‘She would have listened. She was an amazing listener. She would have cared about your feelings. You and Colin could have had a beautiful life together.’
Karen added Armstrong instead chose to ruin her own life and many others.
‘When you shot Moriah in the heart, you shot me in my heart,’ the grieving mom stated.
As Karen walked back to her seat, she maintained eye contact with Armstrong as she walked past her.
Wilson’s mom, Karen, took to the stand after Kaitlin Armstrong’s sentencing to deliver a victim impact statement, telling her daughter’s killer, ‘When you shot Moriah in the heart, you shot me in my heart.’
Kaitlin Armstrong moments before learning an Austin, Texas jury had convicted her of murdering love rival Moriah ‘Mo’ Wilson Thursday. Jurors reached a ‘guilty’ decision in less than two hours
A key piece of evidence in the case was surveillance video from a neighbor that captured Wilson’s blood curdling final screams as Armstrong approached her with the gun. Then three shots can be heard.
Jurors also saw multiple video showing Armstrong’s black Jeep outside the apartment where Wilson was killed.
Additionally, Armstrong’s phone and vehicle GPS both placed her at the murder scene.
DNA belonging to Armstrong was also found on Wilson’s bike outside the apartment.
The murderess turned down an opportunity for a lighter sentence in exchange for pleading guilty months before her trial began, the DailyMail.com exclusively reported.
Moriah ‘Mo’ Wilson’s photo is displayed on the screen during the sentencing portion of Kaitlin Armstrong’s murder trial at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center on Friday
Colin Strickland storms out of the Travis County courthouse after giving evidence against his ex, Kaitlin Armstrong
The former yoga teacher rejected a plea deal from Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza.
‘She could have been released from prison in her 50s or 60s … a heck of a lot sooner than if she’s convicted by a jury,’ said a source who spoke on condition of anonymity told the DailyMail.com.
‘Against the advice of her attorney, she rejected the plea deal. She is insisting on trying that case, but for her to again flee…it’s just insane.’
Armstrong tried to escape from police custody 19 days before her. Oct. 30 trial began while she was out of jail on a doctor’s visit, but jail guard caught her.
Authorities later revealed she made up an reason to go to doctor and had been training by running before her botched escape.
The jail break was the second time Armstrong tried to evade law enforcement.
The yoga teacher is pictured before the attack (left) and after fleeing the country (right). Police said she underwent plastic surgery, said to be a nose job, and dyed her hair brown while on the run
Days after Wilson murder, after police questioned Armstrong and she fled to Costa Rica using her sister’s passport.
After a warrant was issued for her arrest in Wilson’s death, US Marshals tracked her down to a remote seaside town in the Central American country and returned her to the US.
While she was on the lam, she spent almost $7,000 getting plastic surgery to change her appearance, including a nose job, a brow lift and filler and dying her hair dark, according to court testimony.
However, Armstrong’s days in court are not over yet. The convicted murder faces a separate felony charge for her failed escape from jail guards in Austin that has yet to be tried.