Kaitlin Armstrong, the yoga teacher who murdered a pro-cyclist in a jealous rage last month was finally captured last Thursday after 6 weeks on the run.
Armstrong, 34, was captured in Costa Rica after 43 days on the run.
“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 US Marshal for the Western District of Texas Susan Pamerleau. “This is an example of combining the resources of local, state, federal and international authorities to apprehend a violent fugitive, bring an end to that run and hopefully a sense of closure to the victim’s family.”
Armstrong arrived in the US this weekend and looked unrecognizable with her short dark brown hair.
According to Inside Edition, Armstrong had plastic surgery, cut her hair shorter and dyed it dark brown in an effort to evade law enforcement.
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According to police, Armstrong shot and killed 25-year-old Moriah Wilson in a jealous rage on May 11 for having an affair with her boyfriend, Colin Strickland.
Wilson went on a date with Strickland in Austin the night she was murdered.
Armstrong had reportedly been stalking Moriah Wilson and killed her within minutes of her returning home from her dinner date.
Colin Strickland, Moriah WIlson, left, and Kaitlin Armstrong; photo courtesy of Fox News
According to US Marshals, Kaitlin Armstrong was dropped off at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey on May 18 – one day after Austin police obtained an arrest warrant.
Then she disappeared.
US Marshals said there was no outbound flight reservation’s in Armstrong’s name.
It was revealed on Thursday that Armstrong used a fraudulent passport to fly from Newark to San Jose, Costa Rica on May 18.
According to Inside Edition, a witness in Costa Rica discovered a $6,350 receipt for cosmetic surgery under another person’s name along with Armstrong’s sister’s passport at a hostel in Santa Teresa.
Armstrong had reportedly been living on $12,200 cash that she made from selling her Jeep.
The witness, Zachary Paulsen, told Inside Edition that Armstrong had a bandage around her nose following her cosmetic procedure.
Inside Edition reported:
Authorities say Armstrong was financing her new life in Costa Rica with $12,200 she got from selling her Jeep before she fled the United States. They say she was staying in the inexpensive hostel-type accommodation to make her money go further.
“She was just asking about how to get around cheaper, and then the police came,” Zachary Paulsen, who says he witnessed the arrest, told Inside Edition.
Paulsen showed Inside Edition a passport in Armstrong’s name that he says was left behind in a locker after her arrest. He says a second passport bearing the name of her lookalike sister, Christine, was also found, along with a $6,350 receipt for cosmetic surgery under another name.
“[She had] a bandage on her nose and she had blood in her nostrils,” Paulsen said.
U.S. Marshals said Armstrong used someone else’s passport to get to the Central American nation and was trying to build a new life in the remote beach town.
“It looks like she retreated back to her hobby, her career of being in the yoga practice. We believe she was trying to learn new yoga, possibly to instruct,” Deputy U.S. Marshal Brandon Filla said.