TX - Moriah Wilson, 25, prized cyclist, fatally shot before race, Austin, May 2022 #2

[SteveP]

If it was not a strategic move, why did US Marshals just today announce that KA's Jeep has been found? They could have kept that information quiet. Can anyone even remember the last time the public was asked to be on the lookout for it? I cannot. Information has been released about her appearance at LaGuardia and Newark Liberty, and the public has been asked to continue to look for her, but her Jeep has not been mentioned since early into the case. If LE had been still looking for it for the past six weeks, doesn't it seem likely that they would have continued to ask the public to look for it? I don't believe her "Wanted" posters ever mentioned her vehicle.

The news released today almost makes the Marshals look like the Keystone Cops. It took them until now to find a car that was basically under their noses the whole time, with a paper trail leading to it?? I can very well be wrong, but I am not buying it. I know some of you probably think I am too gung-ho pro LE, but I just have the utmost respect for the professionalism of the level of Marshals. Here is one more reminder of just a part of what they do. JMO

Fugitive Apprehension  The U.S. Marshals Service is the federal government’s primary agency for fugitive investigations.  The Marshals have the broadest arrest authority among federal law enforcement agencies.  The Marshals provide assistance to state and local agencies in locating and apprehending their most violent fugitives.  The Marshals arrest on average 337 fugitives every day.  U.S. Marshals task forces combine the efforts of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate and arrest the most dangerous fugitives.  Task force officers are state and local police officers who receive special deputations with the Marshals. While on a task force, these officers can exercise U.S. Marshals authorities, such as crossing jurisdictional lines.  The U.S. Marshals “15 Most Wanted” fugitive program draws attention to some of the country’s most dangerous and high-profile fugitives. These fugitives tend to be career criminals with histories of violence, and they pose a significant threat to public safety.  U.S. Marshals work with the international law enforcement community to apprehend fugitives abroad as well as to seek foreign fugitives living or residing in the U.S.

2020 Overview | U.S. Marshals Service

Fact Sheet overview information about the U.S. Marshals Service.

www.usmarshals.gov

 

[SMK777]

If it was not a strategic move, why did US Marshals just today announce that KA's Jeep has been found? They could have kept that information quiet. Can anyone even remember the last time the public was asked to be on the lookout for it? I cannot. Information has been released about her appearance at LaGuardia and Newark Liberty, and the public has been asked to continue to look for her, but her Jeep has not been mentioned since early into the case. If LE had been still looking for it for the past six weeks, doesn't it seem likely that they would have continued to ask the public to look for it? I don't believe her "Wanted" posters ever mentioned her vehicle.

The news released today almost makes the Marshals look like the Keystone Cops. It took them until now to find a car that was basically under their noses the whole time, with a paper trail leading to it?? I can very well be wrong, but I am not buying it. I know some of you probably think I am too gung-ho pro LE, but I just have the utmost respect for the professionalism of the level of Marshals. Here is one more reminder of just a part of what they do. JMO

Fugitive Apprehension  The U.S. Marshals Service is the federal government’s primary agency for fugitive investigations.  The Marshals have the broadest arrest authority among federal law enforcement agencies.  The Marshals provide assistance to state and local agencies in locating and apprehending their most violent fugitives.  The Marshals arrest on average 337 fugitives every day.  U.S. Marshals task forces combine the efforts of federal, state and local law enforcement agencies to locate and arrest the most dangerous fugitives.  Task force officers are state and local police officers who receive special deputations with the Marshals. While on a task force, these officers can exercise U.S. Marshals authorities, such as crossing jurisdictional lines.  The U.S. Marshals “15 Most Wanted” fugitive program draws attention to some of the country’s most dangerous and high-profile fugitives. These fugitives tend to be career criminals with histories of violence, and they pose a significant threat to public safety.  U.S. Marshals work with the international law enforcement community to apprehend fugitives abroad as well as to seek foreign fugitives living or residing in the U.S.

2020 Overview | U.S. Marshals Service

Fact Sheet overview information about the U.S. Marshals Service.

www.usmarshals.gov

I understand. It makes a good case for them, indeed.

This is what is confusing. What strategic reasons might they have for releasing the airport, campgrounds, and location of the vehicle all weeks late?

Just attempting to process this….

 

[Curiousobserver]

She acted fast to get some cash and ditch the vehicle.

Amazes me that it has taken the U.S. Marshals all this time to locate her vehicle.

Is that when they found it, or when they let the media know they found it?

 

[SMK777]

Is that when they found it, or when they let the media know they found it?

That’s what we’re trying to figure out. Why release it so late, though?

 

[cujenn81]

I just renewed my passport and I have never had fingerprints or biometric scans; nothin more than a poor photo I took myself was submitted along with my old passport and the fee. I submitted it to a local county clerk who certified it and sent it in for me.

There is an enhanced passport you can get that does have that data.

Ordinary US passports contain covert measures to ensure the document is a real document but no biometric data of any kind.

I do agree she is unlikely to have obtained a fake passport or that she would know how to obtain fake ID of any sort.

I was mistaken about the fingerprints. I have TSA pre check (which allows me to bypass security) and had to be fingerprinted for that. BUT all passports issued after 2007 contain biometric data chips and the biometrics are derived from the photo you submit. That’s why they have such strict guidelines — the height of the head should measure between this many and that many inches, eye height should be this many inches from the bottom of the photo, full head from the top of the hair to the shoulders, head must be front facing with open eyes, closed mouth, neutral expression, no eyeglasses, no hat or head coverings unless it’s worn for religious purposes everyday, no shadow on face or background, must have plain white/off-white background, normal lighting, and on and on and on.

If your passport has that little square symbol (that kinda looks like a flag) on the front of it, it’s a biometric passport. That’s true for all countries, btw. The symbol is the same.

 

[Curiousobserver]

That’s what we’re trying to figure out. Why release it so late, though?

My guess is this was for her benefit somehow- to let her know they know things and may be closer than she thinks.

 

[SMK777]

My guess is this was for her benefit somehow- to let her know they know things and may be closer than she thinks.

But wouldn’t they rather she be carefree and believe she’s in the clear? Why give her a heads up so that she becomes more cautious and goes out less?

 

[SpanishInquisition]

No, people are asking why she wasn’t tailed the night she left, and discovered selling it in the act. She got a huge head start on them while they were looking for this vehicle as her mode of transportation. And now it can’t be processed for evidence.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1539975790737035264

I'm waiting for it to come out that it was a Brian Laudrie scenario where LE thought they were monitoring him but instead were watching his mother. It would seem like a huge miss if they weren't even attempting to monitor KA. Maybe for instance they thought she was at one of her properties, but they were actually monitoring a tenant while she was elsewhere.

 

[SMK777]

I'm waiting for it to come out that it was a Brian Laudrie scenario where LE thought they were monitoring him but instead were watching his mother. It would seem like a huge miss if they weren't even attempting to monitor KA. Maybe for instance they thought she was at one of her properties, but they were actually monitoring a tenant while she was elsewhere.

You have a point there….

 

[Curiousobserver]

But wouldn’t they rather she be carefree and believe she’s in the clear? Why give her a heads up so that she becomes more cautious and goes out less?

Or she could read it and move.

We don't know what finding the car (and the money) means to her exactly. It could mean (to her) that they know how she converted that to check to cash or who she gave it to or make her question if they know how she is funding herself (hypothetically of course). I am giving them the benefit of doubt of course.

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

Here is a link to the MSM article that includes the U.S. Marshals' press release dated today that they located KA's Jeep at a Carmax dealership.

Kaitlin Armstrong: Suspect accused in Texas love triangle murder sold car for $12,200 before fleeing, feds say

Kaitlin Armstrong sold her Jeep Grand Cherokee, spotted near the crime scene around the time of Moriah Wilson's shooting death, one day after she was detained by Texas cops.

www.foxnews.com

Have there been other articles released about the sale of the jeep? We all know media sometimes gets things a bit incorrect or words things differently than other sources. Will be interesting to read how other sources present this.

For example, I noticed this wording in the Fox article above:
"She hopped on a plane – and then took several more flights – starting the next day, officials have said."

"Several" to me implies more than 2. If she flew from Austin to Houston, and then Houston to LaGuardia, that is TWO flights. Not "several more" after the first one.

 

[EGirl]

I'm a little shocked that she has evaded this long. I don't see her being a master mind criminal. But, who knows.

 

[spangled]

I've done a lot of backpacking, and it sounds like she is well travelled.

I could make 12,000 easily last a year camping.

 

[SMK777]

Have there been other articles released about the sale of the jeep? We all know media sometimes gets things a bit incorrect or words things differently than other sources. Will be interesting to read how other sources present this.

For example, I noticed this wording in the Fox article above:
"She hopped on a plane – and then took several more flights – starting the next day, officials have said."

"Several" to me implies more than 2. If she flew from Austin to Houston, and then Houston to LaGuardia, that is TWO flights. Not "several more" after the first one.

Yes, I’ve been seeing a lot of such mistakes for weeks in articles about KA, and on news shows, as well. (Nancy Grace saying Austin/La Guardia airport footage was Newark and that KA was “still wearing the exact same clothes”; FBI/CIA expert saying KA had been dropped off at La Guardia rather than Newark).

The articles seem to be multiplying online now, so let’s hope some don’t have errors.

 

[JerseyWasHome2]

Yes, I’ve been seeing a lot of such mistakes for weeks in articles about KA, and on news shows, as well. (Nancy Grace saying Austin/La Guardia airport footage was Newark and that KA was “still wearing the exact same clothes”; FBI/CIA expert saying KA had been dropped off at La Guardia rather than Newark).

The articles seem to be multiplying online now, so let’s hope some don’t have errors.

Yes! Nancy's comment about the clothes ...

 

[imstilla.grandma]

On May 13, two days after Wilson’s death, Armstrong’s Jeep was sold to the dealership for $12,200. The dealership paid Armstrong with a check one day after authorities questioned her about Wilson’s murder. Authorities said she fled the state the following day, flying to New York after a stopover in Houston.

Authorities said Armstrong was last spotted in New Jersey, when she was dropped off at Newark International Airport on May 18. Investigators searched the outbound flights, however, and said that “no flight reservations have been found under Kaitlin Armstrong” — sparking speculation that she might have been using her sister’s name.

As previously reported by Law&Crime, Wilson, who was in Texas for the Gravel Locos race, had apparently had a romantic relationship with Armstrong’s boyfriend, professional cyclist Colin Strickland, during a period when Armstrong and Strickland were separated. On the day she was killed, Wilson had gone swimming with Strickland and out to eat at a restaurant. He then dropped her off at the East Austin home of her friend Caitlin Cash, where she was staying, just moments before she sustained multiple gunshot wounds.

Armstrong’s vehicle played a pivotal role in identifying her as Wilson’s potential killer. Surveillance footage from a neighbor’s security camera reportedly showed the vehicle drive past Cash’s house one minute after Strickland dropped her off at the residence, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by The Daily Beast.

“The dark-colored SUV then slowed down, appearing to come to a stop, directly next to [the friend’s] residence,” the affidavit reportedly states. “The SUV appeared to have a large bicycle rack mounted on the trailer hitch of the vehicle, a luggage rack mounted on the roof, and what appeared to be chrome around the windows. No other vehicles were observed on video surveillance passing by until marked emergency vehicles arrived.”

U.S. Marshals Reveal Texas Woman Wanted in Murder of Cyclist Sold Car Two Days After the Shooting

A vehicle registered to the Texas woman suspected of killing a professional cyclist has been located, federal authorities announced.

lawandcrime.com

Authorities said Armstrong was dropped off at Newark Liberty International Airport on May 18, but no outbound flight reservations were ever found under her name. It wasn’t clear if she ever boarded a plane or simply disappeared again from the airport.

A man came forward last week claiming to have seen Armstrong at a campground in Livingston Manor in upstate New York last month.

The tipster told Fox News that the fugitive had stayed with her sister Christine Armstrong, who was a long-term camper at the site.

Anna Moriah Wilson slay suspect Kaitlin Armstrong sold car before fleeing

Murder suspect, Kaitlin Armstrong sold her Jeep Grand Cherokee for thousands of dollars before fleeing Texas, US Marshals revealed Thursday.

nypost.com

 

[Sundog]

I was mistaken about the fingerprints. I have TSA pre check (which allows me to bypass security) and had to be fingerprinted for that. BUT all passports issued after 2007 contain biometric data chips and the biometrics are derived from the photo you submit. That’s why they have such strict guidelines — the height of the head should measure between this many and that many inches, eye height should be this many inches from the bottom of the photo, full head from the top of the hair to the shoulders, head must be front facing with open eyes, closed mouth, neutral expression, no eyeglasses, no hat or head coverings unless it’s worn for religious purposes everyday, no shadow on face or background, must have plain white/off-white background, normal lighting, and on and on and on.

If your passport has that little square symbol (that kinda looks like a flag) on the front of it, it’s a biometric passport. That’s true for all countries, btw. The symbol is the same.

View attachment 350871View attachment 350870

I have dual citizenship, and one of my passports that was issued in 2015 (not the U.S.) has a page that says the following:

"This passport contains a contactless integrated circuit, which is an electronic device. In addition to the care and respect afforded a passport, please treat this document as you would any other portable electronic device and take precautions that it doesn't become wet, folded or damaged. Abuse may adversely affect the operation of the integrated electronic circuit and reduce its usefulness to the bearer and to border inspection personnel."

Once when we got off the plane on a trip overseas and were going through customs at the airport, the border inspection officer asked my husband to tilt his head slightly in a different direction, so we knew that he was paying attention to some digital information at that point, while he held my husband's passport in his hand.

 

[SteveP]

I understand. It makes a good case for them, indeed.

This is what is confusing. What strategic reasons might they have for releasing the airport, campgrounds, and location of the vehicle all weeks late?

Just attempting to process this….

The only strategic reason I could offer for why they may have released the "new" info about her car being found, as well as the knowledge that it was sold for $12K may be as simple as, to get her face back in front of the public. All of us that are here following this know that news had pretty much dwindled down to nothing, but if you take a moment right now and google 'Moriah Wilson latest news', several stories, including several national news sites, pop up immediately, and that may be all LE wanted. By releasing even a little tidbit of news, even if it may not be new news to them, it gets the story back into the spotlight. More pressure on KA, a little nudge to say, "Here is your face on national news again, can't keep hiding forever. We're still here, see what we have learned now. We are right behind you and catching up, and your days are numbered". JMO

 

[SMK777]

The only strategic reason I have for why they may have released the "new" info about her car being found, as well as the knowledge that it was sold for $12K may be as simple as..to get her face back in front of the public. All of us that are here following this know that news had pretty much dwindled down to nothing, but if you take a moment right now and google 'Moriah Wilson latest news', several stories, including several national news sites, pop up immediately, and that may be all LE wanted. By releasing even a little tidbit of news, it gets the story back into the spotlight. More pressure on KA, a little nudge to say, "Here is your face on national news again, can't keep hiding. We're still here, right behind you and catching up, and your days are numbered". JMO

Thanks. Ok, and if that helps them to capture her, or leads to someone phoning a tip in, then that’s all to the good!

 

[jash]

‘Vanished Into Thin Air’: The Search For a Romantic Rival Accused of Murdering a Cyclist

The U.S. Marshals said Thursday that Kaitlin Armstrong cashed in at a Texas dealership for $12,000 a day after cops questioned her.

www.thedailybeast.com

For [DC], who used to be married to [MW]’s grandfather, the idea that [KA] has been able to evade authorities for more than a month is “really upsetting.”

Noting that [MW] was a part of her life for 15 years, [DC] told The Daily Beast that she could barely wrap her mind around the idea that “Moriah was brutally murdered by a yoga teacher—which is not very zen—but that the teacher is getting away with it!”

“It’s unbelievable that someone can get away with murder now,” [DC] told The Daily Beast. “Police had her in their custody and they let her go! It sucks. Moriah deserves justice and nothing is adding up.”
...
“It’s like she just vanished into thin air,” [DC] said.