Austin police detective: Kaitlin Armstrong's demeanor was suspicious during interview

An Austin police detective testified Thursday that when she interviewed Kaitlin Armstrong the day after cyclist Anna Moriah Wilson was shot and killed, Armstrong's demeanor raised her suspicions.

"She's very still and guarded throughout the interview," Detective Katy Conner told jurors. Conner said that when she told Armstrong that her vehicle was seen near the crime scene, Armstrong did not deny it.

Conner said she asked Armstrong in the interview on May 12, 2022, why her vehicle was near where Wilson died. "She doesn't say why her vehicle was over there but acknowledges it doesn't look good," the detective testified.

A video of the interview at the Austin Police Department was shown in court Thursday. Armstrong, who had not yet been charged with murder, can be seen sitting in a room wearing a sleeveless top and yoga pants, as well as flip-flops.

She was under arrest because she had an outstanding Class B warrant, Conner told her at the beginning of the interview. Armstrong kept asking for details about the warrant, but Conner said she only knew it was for theft of service.

During the interview, Conner stepped out of the room briefly and then walked back in, telling Armstrong she was no longer under arrest because the date of her birth on the warrant was wrong. "You can leave," Conner told Armstrong.

Armstrong did not leave but told Conner that when police "arrested me in front of my house and in front of my neighbors, that was incredibly humiliating."

Conner then asked Armstrong if she knew what had happened.

Armstrong said Colin Strickland, her boyfriend, had walked into the house where they both lived and said "one of the women in the cycling community had passed away."

Conner then said, "It sounds like Colin was talking to this girl for a little bit and kind of threw your name in there."

More: Kaitlin Armstrong's former boyfriend Colin Strickland testifies in her murder trial

"I think there's a lot more," Conner said to Armstrong. "I think he might be saying some stuff. I want to get your side in it."

Armstrong said she didn't have any information that Strickland saw or talked to Wilson.

Conner later said in the video that when Strickland talked to police, he said "there was jealous stuff going on."

"That doesn't look very good," the detective said.

Armstrong didn't comment on what Conner said, but she told the detective she wanted to leave the interview.

The detective then asked her again to explain her side of what happened and said, "There's only so much we can do if I'm not able to explain your side of it." Armstrong said, "I understand," and then left the interview.

Conner testified Thursday that Armstrong had said a few times during the interview that she wanted to leave but stayed in her chair. She said that when people stay seated in a police interview even if they can leave, it's usually because they want to see how much information police have.

The defense had made a motion before the trial to suppress some evidence in the case, including the video, saying the arrest affidavit charging Armstrong with murder was illegal because Armstrong hadn't been read her rights when she was under arrest. The judge had ruled against their motion, a prosecutor said Thursday.

Conner testified that she was going to read Armstrong her rights until she found that police couldn't use the arrest warrant because it had the wrong birth date.

Wilson, 25, briefly dated Armstrong's boyfriend. Known as Mo, Wilson was a rising star in the cycling racing world before she was found dead in an East Austin garage apartment on May 11, 2022. She was shot three times, police said.

Wilson had dated Strickland, who was then a professional cyclist, for a short time in October 2021 when Strickland and Armstrong had briefly split. Two witnesses testified Wednesday that Armstrong had been angry at Wilson for dating Strickland and had talked about wanting to kill her.

Armstrong fled to Costa Rica on May 18, 2022, using her sister's passport, police have said. Deputy U.S. Marshal Emir Perez testified Thursday that he was the first law enforcement officer to find Armstrong in the Costa Rica town of Santa Teresa.

More: ‘I would kill her': Witnesses say Kaitlin Armstrong talked about killing Anna Moriah Wilson

He said the tourist town was small with one main road, was on the beach and had many yoga hostels. He said he was dressed undercover as a tourist wearing a Hawaiian shirt and shorts on June 29, 2022, when he approached Armstrong, who as sitting in a patio area outside the Don Jon hostel.

"Initially, it didn't appear to be her, but as I got a little closer, I confirmed it was her," said Perez. "It appeared she had a bandage on her nose and her lips looked a bit swollen. The hair we were looking for was a bit lighter."

Perez said he was able to confirm Armstrong's identity based on her eyes.

He said he started speaking to her in Spanish, asking about the price of the hostel and the amenities. She pulled out her phone and used Google to translate what he was saying. He testified that he spoke in Spanish because most Costa Ricans know the language. Perez said he didn't ask Armstrong her name, but his partner did. "She said her name was Kaitlin Armstrong," he said.

He said he couldn't arrest her because it was not his jurisdiction. Perez said he immediately notified local police, who arrested her.

Defense attorney Rick Cofer asked Perez if he thought that sitting outside on a patio was "probably not the best place for an American with minimal language skills to attempt to hide?"

Perez said he thought "it was probably one of the best places because so many people matched her description, and it was very difficult to discern her true identity."

Police have said Armstrong had plastic surgery and had cut and colored her hair before she was arrested.

Police also have said that when Wilson visited Austin from San Francisco on May 10, 2022, to prepare for a race, Armstrong knew she was in town. Armstrong repeatedly checked a phone app called Strava where Wilson had entered the bicycle routes she had ridden, witnesses have testified during the trial. Wilson also had access to Strickland's iPhone texts.

Strickland and Wilson went out to swim and eat on the day she was killed, Strickland has testified. Police have said he dropped her off on his motorcycle at the home where she was staying and went back to his South Austin house. He has not been accused of any wrongdoing in the case.

Videos from neighbors' cameras show a black SUV with a bicycle rack similar to Armstrong's vehicle driving in the neighborhood where Wilson was staying shortly before she was killed, police said. They said Armstrong's DNA also was found on Wilson's bicycle that was found thrown into grass near the apartment where Wilson was killed.

Defense attorneys have questioned why police didn't test evidence gathered to determine if Wilson had been sexually assaulted. They also have said that police didn't question other potential suspects until after they issued an arrest warrant for Armstrong. Police also never did a forensic examination of Strickland's laptop, defense attorneys have said.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin detective: Armstrong's demeanor was suspicious in interview