Bond for Kaitlin Armstrong, accused of killing pro cyclist Anna Moriah Wilson, set at $3.5 million
A woman who was arrested in Costa Rica on Thursday after being accused of murdering a pro cyclist will be held on a $3.5 million bond. Kaitlin Armstrong must also surrender her passport prior to release, and will be GPS monitored, according to court records from Travis County.
Armstrong was discovered in hostel on Santa Teresa Beach in Provincia de Puntarenas, Costa Rica, earlier this week, the U.S. Marshals Service said in a statement. Armstrong was expected to be returned to the United States, where she faces a murder charge in the death of Anna Moriah Wilson, the agency said. Vermont native Wilson, a competitive gravel and mountain bike racer known as "Mo," had been in Austin, Texas, for a cycling event.
Wilson was found in an Austin home with gunshot wounds on May 11. Responding officers performed CPR, but she died at the scene. The 25-year-old was in Austin for a cycling race — she was from Vermont.
Six days after her death, authorities issued a warrant for Armstrong, accusing her in Wilson's murder.
Authorities said Armstrong sold her vehicle May 13, then flew from Austin to Houston shortly after being questioned that day by authorities about Wilson's death. She then flew to New York before using a passport and ticket, under the name of someone she knew, to fly from Newark, New Jersey, to San Jose, Costa Rica, on May 18, the service said. Authorities did not identify the person Armstrong pretended to be.
A complaint filed on Friday by the Marshals Service in New Jersey accused Armstrong of misuse of a passport.
"The Marshals Service elevated the Kaitlin Armstrong investigation to major case status early in this investigation, which likely played a key role in her capture after a 43-day run," said U.S. Marshal for the Western District of Texas Susan Pamerleau.
Wilson had previously dated Armstrong's boyfriend, cyclist Colin Strickland, who has cooperated with investigators and is not a suspect, according to an affidavit. Armstrong's SUV was seen on surveillance video outside the home where Wilson was found shot to death.