(NewsNation) — The U.S. Marshal leading the search for a woman accused of killing a cyclist said her capture is inevitable.
"Come forward," Deputy Brandon Filla said on "NewsNation Prime" on Friday. "Surrender to authorities. It's just a matter of time. We're working day in and day out. We'd like to safely bring you into custody so you can have your day in court and tell your side of the story."
Kaitlin Marie Armstrong, 34, was last seen at the Austin, Texas, airport on May 14. Texas investigators and U.S. Marshals say she flew to Houston at 12:30 p.m., then boarded a Southwest Airlines flight to New York LaGuardia Airport.
Filla says that's where they lost the trail.
Armstrong is wanted for the first-degree murder of 25-year-old Anna Moriah Wilson, also known as Mo.
Wilson, a champion mountain biker and a rising star on the biking scene, was in Austin for an upcoming race.
On May 11, Wilson and another racer, Colin Strickland, went for a swim. Strickland dropped her off where she was staying. Police say moments later, surveillance video shows an SUV — like the one Armstrong drives — driving by. Wilson was later found with multiple gunshot wounds.
Police picked up Armstrong and questioned her, but said she was free to go.
An arrest affidavit obtained by KXAN said Strickland told police he had been in a relationship with Armstrong for about three years. During a break in their relationship, he said he met and began dating Wilson.
Meanwhile, police got an anonymous tip claiming that Wilson and Strickland had dated for a week back in October. When Armstrong found out about the October fling back in January, she became “furious and was shaking with anger and wanted to kill her," a friend remembered, according to the affidavit.
It was then police started to piece together a love triangle. However, Strickland, also a pro cyclist, said his relationship with Wilson has been professional since October, and he is not considered a suspect.
Meanwhile, police have evidence of a recent gun purchase that could match the gun used in the murder. This, together with text messages and the tipster, prompted an arrest warrant for Armstrong.
Robert Allen, a professor of homeland security at Tulane University, doesn’t think she can last on the run much longer.
"This is totally heat-of-the-moment," Allen said. "It happened, but she's not really prepared to be vanished."
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