IA - Ashley Okland, 27, West Des Moines, 8 April 2011 *arrest March 2026*

[dotr]

Woman arrested, charged with murder 15-year-old cold case

West Des Moines police have arrested a 53-year-old woman and charged her with first-degree murder in connection with a 2011 killing.

cbs2iowa.com

Mar 17, 2026
West Des Moines police make arrest in 15-year-old cold case of murdered realtor Ashley Okland

 

[dotr]

Mar 18, 2026 rbbm

Watch live at 9 a.m.: WDM police news conference after arrest in Ashley Okland cold case

Iowa authorities have charged Kristin Ramsey, 53, of Woodward, with murder 15 years after West Des Moines realtor Ashley Okland was killed at an open house. West Des Moines police are holding a news conference at 9 a.m. Wednesday.

www.kcci.com

'Kristin Ramsey, 53, of Woodward, is charged with first-degree murder. She has been booked into the Dallas County Jail and is being held on a $2 million cash-only bond.

Okland, 27, was found dead with two gunshot wounds inside a model townhome where she was holding an open house on April 8, 2011.'

'A news conference will be held at the West Des Moines Police Department at 9 a.m. on Wednesday. KCCI will livestream the news conference on our website, Facebook and YouTube.'

 

[dotr]

Mar 18, 2026
Iowa cold case: Full news conference following arrest in Ashley Okland's 2011 murder

 

[Ssschu]

No new info given except they aren't anticipating anymore arrests in this case.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

She's being held on a $2 million cash-only bond.

There's no word on what if any connection there was between the two women.

Dallas County Attorney Matt Schultz said at a Wednesday news conference, "After hearing the evidence, a Dallas County grand jury issued a true bill indicting Kristin Ramsey with the murder of Ashley Okland."

There's also no word on what led to the break in the case.

Okland's death sent "shockwaves" throughout the state and "haunted" the real estate community, West Des Moines Police Assistant Chief Jody Hayes said at the news conference.

"That Friday afternoon when Ashley was taken from us seems so long ago. We had lost our hope in finding answers and having any justice," Okland's sister, Brittany Bruce, told reporters.

She thanked the detectives and prosecutors for their relentless work on the case.

"We have full confidence in their abilities to see this through," she said.

Woman charged in murder of Iowa realtor found dead during open house

Ashley Okland was found shot to death during an open house. Nearly 15 years later, a woman has been charged with her murder.

abc7chicago.com

 

[dotr]

https://www.wfmd.com/2026/03/18/realtors-cold-case-murder-finally-solved-after-15-years-police-say/

''At the time of Okland’s death, Ramsey worked as an administrative assistant and sales manager for Rottlund Homes, which was the developer of the townhome where Okland was killed, according to the Des Moines Register.''

 

[Dotta]

https://twitter.com/x/status/2034383693469376606

 

[moonglow123]

So glad an arrest has been made after all this time! Definitely shocked it's another woman, jealousy seems like a probable motive.

 

[JoeFromLB]

Motive??
Explanation??

 

[dotr]

rbbm

Mar 18, 2026
'Details of Ashley Okland murder case won't be released to maintain 'integrity of the judicial process'

 

[bestill]

I bet the builder is stunned! - "Police and prosecutors did not discuss what led to Ramsey's arrest, but Ramsey at the time worked for Rottlund Homes, the company that built the model home where Okland was killed, Ramsey’s then-boss, Steven Kahn, told ABC News.
Khan said nothing about Ramsey led him to suspect she may have been involved in Okland’s death.
"She was the nicest lady. I’m totally shocked," he said."

Woman arrested for 2011 cold case murder of Iowa real estate agent

A woman has been arrested in the 2011 cold case murder of an Iowa real estate agent, authorities said.

abcnews.com

 

[joe jones]

I have followed this case over the years and am so pleased to see an arrest,

 

[joe jones]

Woman is arrested for cold case murder of glamorous real estate agent

Kristin Ramsey, 53, was arrested on Tuesday for the first-degree murder of 27-year-old Ashley Okland, who was killed at an open house nearly 15 years ago.

www.dailymail.co.uk

story getting some international attention, (I don't usually go to the DM website but I pinched my nose and did a quick copy and paste

 

[joe jones]

From the reports I have read she attended her funeral, so from that I assume they knew each other in some way, either personally or professionally, I wonder if she was considered a person of interest or suspect from the outset and it took LE time to find the evidence to charge her, or if they developed her as a suspect over the years and finally felt they had enough evidence to charge, then again a new piece of information or evidence could have come to light recently

i will follow along as we move through the judicial process and find out more information,

gives me hope for other cases I follow such as Missy Bevers

 

[bestill]

From the reports I have read she attended her funeral, so from that I assume they knew each other in some way, either personally or professionally, I wonder if she was considered a person of interest or suspect from the outset and it took LE time to find the evidence to charge her, or if they developed her as a suspect over the years and finally felt they had enough evidence to charge, then again a new piece of information or evidence could have come to light recently

i will follow along as we move through the judicial process and find out more information,

gives me hope for other cases I follow such as Missy Bevers

She must be quite the actress if she pulled this off for 15 years. All right there under their noses! I need to catch up on this from the beginning since I wasn't on WS in 2011.

 

[bestill]

This is a good article, it gives a bit more details about the perp - https://www.desmoinesregister.com/s...yI0HIXEZfPgNozY83Y_aem_bAYY0RS53RHcPuCbV96cmA

 

[joe jones]

I can imagine how shocked KR family must have been when the police came knocking with an arrest warrant for murder, and then to learn that she has kept this secret for 15 years, and now she is in jail with a 2 million dollar bond, and their life continues on, they have to go to work, have to see there friends knowing that everybody knows what KR is charged with,

and they will have to decide as more evidence is revealed whether they believe she did it or not, and whether they are going to publicly/privately support her,

I can imagine not only her world but everybody she love world has tipped on its axis, and they all know nothing will ever be the same,

after 15 years she may have thought the day she would be arrested would never happen, and she has been able to live her life and try to put what she did in the past, I doubt she ever truly was able to not have days where the fear and anxiety were overwhelming, but she appears to have not done anything to arouse suspicion within her circle, we will eventually learn when and what prompted LE to start investigating her

and some people maybe even members of AQ family would have known she was under investigation as they may have testified before the GJ, I wonder if she knew the GJ was investigating her for murder,

No article has mentioned any family but her husband, we do not know if she has children, but all the people close to her, and her colleagues must be absolutely reeling,

AO family will have very different emotions, but they will be as curious as we are as to why KR killed AO and how she got away with it for 15 years,

and again from reading articles this seems to have been her only crime, except for a speeding ticket

I look forward to learning what evidence LE have,

 

[airportwoman]

Woman is arrested for cold case murder of glamorous real estate agent

Kristin Ramsey, 53, was arrested on Tuesday for the first-degree murder of 27-year-old Ashley Okland, who was killed at an open house nearly 15 years ago.

www.dailymail.co.uk

story getting some international attention, (I don't usually go to the DM website but I pinched my nose and did a quick copy and paste

Had the arrestee been male, I really don't think it would have been news outside the region.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

West Des Moines Police said at a news conference on Wednesday that an “unrelenting pursuit of justice” let to the indictment against Kristin Ramsey, who at the time was an administrative assistant and sales manager for Rottlund Homes. She has been charged with first-degree murder.

“Ashley’s story has kept many of us awake at night, revisiting the details over and over in our minds, searching for that missing piece that would tie everything together and lead us down the right path to identifying a person who was responsible for this act,” West Des Moines Assistant Police Chief Jody Hayes said.

At the news conference, police declined to reveal additional details of the case. Court documents d not include a probable cause statement, and Ramsey’s attorney declined comment, although KCRG reports that her attorneys have asked to lower her $2 million bond to $100,000, arguing that she is not a flight risk. They agree that she would wear a GPS monitor, adhere to a curfew, and surrender her passport.

With police not commenting on details of the case, media was stymied to find clues about why Ramsey may have killed Okland. The extent of her criminal record was a speeding ticket in 2001, the Register said. She was married in 1995 and had worked at Rottlund for about 14 years at the time of Okland’s murder

Arrest in 15-Year-Old Cold Case Murder of Iowa Realtor, Shot Dead At Townhouse She Was Showing

An Iowa grand jury this week indicted a now-53-year-old woman in the murder of a realtor who was shot to death in a model townhouse she was showing on April 8, 2011. An employee of Rottlund Homes, the developer of the townhouse, heard a commotion inside and went to investigate, the Des Moines...

www.crimeonline.com