Woman accused of killing elite cyclist tries to escape

Ms Armstrong attempted to scale a fence to escape corrections officers

The woman who police have accused of fleeing to Costa Rica after allegedly killing an elite professional cyclist in Texas has reportedly attempted to escape custody.

Kaitlin Marie Armstrong has been accused in the 2022 fatal shooting of Anna Moriah Wilson. She allegedly fled to Costa Rica in June 2022 and was deported several days after her arrival at the behest of the US government. Ms Armstrong was received by the US Marshals Service and charged with first-degree murder.

She has pleaded not guilty.

Ms Armstrong has been in custody since then, but allegedly tried to change that fact during a recent visit to a doctor.

On Wednesday, Ms Armstrong was scheduled to undergo an examination at a physicians office. The trip required her to be transported by a corrections officer to a medical building. On her way out of the building, Ms Armstrong reportedly attempted to escape.

“As she and two corrections officers were exiting the medical building after the appointment, Armstrong ran,” Travis County Sheriff's Office spokesman Drew Knight told CNN. “The officers pursued her on foot for approximately 10 minutes without ever losing sight of her.”

In a video that captured her escape attempt, Ms Armstrong could be seen running across a lawn toward a brown wooden fence. A corrections officer pursued but slipped as she gave chase. Ms Armstrong leaped onto the fence, but was eventually caught by the corrections officers.

Ms Armstrong's trial is scheduled to begin on 30 October, according to court records. She will face a jury trial.

Her attorney, Rick Corfer, said last year that his client "wants her day in court" and wants "a trial."

“All I can ask of the press here is that you not consider everything told to you by law enforcement as confirmed and reportable facts. Simply put, there’s a lot more to the story than has yet been heard," he said at the time.

He previously said a fair trial would be “impossible” due to existing biases in the case.

The Independent has reached out to Mr Corfer for comment.

The cyclist, Ms Wilson, was found dead on 11 May 2022, with multiple gunshot wounds. Her body was found at a friend's home in Austin, Texas, after she had reportedly gone to swim with Ms Armstrong's boyfriend, Colin Strickland. Mr Strickland is also a professional cyclist.

Mr Strickland said the pair swam together, had dinner, and then he dropped her off at the home where she would later be found dead.

Investigators believe romantic jealousy may have motivated the shooting.