Killer yoga teacher Kaitlin Armstrong has been sentenced to 90 years in prison after a Texas jury spent less than two hours deliberating before finding her guilty of gunning down love rival Moriah ‘Mo’ Wilson.
Wearing a gray pantsuit in a Texas court room on Friday afternoon, Armstrong stood as her punishment was read in a packed courtroom filled with Wilson’s relatives and her own mother and sister watching, and crying could be heard from someone in the gallery.
She was sentenced to 90 years in prison, and was ordered to pay a $10,000 fine.
Armstrong, 35, faced between 5 to 99 years in prison for shooting dead Wilson who had had a sexual relationship with Armstrong’s boyfriend, Colin Strickland while the pair were broken up and later reconciled.
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.
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
After the sentencing, Armstrong went before the judge to sign official documents. She looked at her own family who was also sitting in the courtroom as she walked into a holding cell outside the courtroom
A photo of victim Moriah ‘Mo’ Wilson, 25, was shown in court during closing statements Thursday. Prior to her murder, Wilson was a rising star in the sport of gravel cycling
Armstrong’s former partner Colin Strickland, left, had previously admitted that he had a sexual relationship with Moriah Wilson, pictured right when he and Armstrong broke up for a few months in fall 2021. He and Armstrong later reconciled, but he maintained contact with Wilson
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
Mo Wilson, whose full name was Anna Moriah Wilson but went by ‘Mo,’ was the topic of the state’s closing remarks to the jury. ‘I’m here to talk about her life, not her death… she was taken from us way too soon,’ said prosecutor Rickey Jones
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.
“As a family, we believe justice has been served,” Wilson’s father, Eric, said at a post-sentencing press conference.
He also appeared to take a swipe at Strickland, who admitted he lied to Armstrong about his relationship with Wilson.
‘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.’
The Wilson’s added they would pray for Armstrong’s family and 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.
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.