Accused murderer Kaitlin Armstrong told plastic surgeons while on the run in Costa Rica that she needed work on her eyes and lips because she had “aged significantly.”
Armstrong, 35, who is accused of fatally shooting Moriah Wilson 18 months ago, fled to Costa Rice after the death and sought a plastic surgeon for a rhinoplasty and eyebrow lift.
During the murder trial in Austin, Texas, it was heard how the accused killer had set up an operation in the country under the name Allison Paige.
The court heard how Armstrong also asked a surgeon if he could do work under her eyes or lips, telling her she had aged ‘significantly’ in recent days.
The jury was shown images of her post-surgery, which showed her face bruised around her nose and eyes. The court was also shown earlier today receipts totaling $6,350 for cosmetic surgery in Costa Rica by doctor Jorge Badilla.
In a document read out in court it was also revealed that Armstrong did not want her surgeon to take pictures of her.
Kaitlin Armstrong enters the courtroom during the first day of her trial at the Blackwell-Thurman Criminal Justice Center, Wednesday, November 1, 2023
Armstrong fled to Costa Rice after the death and sought a plastic surgeon for a nose job and an eyebrow lift. Photos here show her before, left and after, right, the surgery
Wilson was shot three times, with prosecutors accusing Armstrong of killing her because he had contacted Armstrong’s then-boyfriend Colin Strickland, who was Wilson’s ex.
Armstrong denies the allegations but has yet to provide an alibi. Her Jeep Grand Cherokee was filmed by neighborhood ring cameras arriving and leaving the scene at the time of the murder.
In addition to the brow lift and rhinoplasty, Armstrong had fillers in her lips and eyes.
Authorities had previously said she had a nose job and dyed her hair after fleeing the country following Wilson’s death.
In court on Wednesday, we told how Armstrong had explored plastic surgery after Wilson was found dead in an apparent attempt to change her appearance and avoid capture.
The court had also heard earlier today how she whined to police about being ‘humiliated’ by them after they arrested her over the murder.
‘I’d like to leave. You arrested me right in front of my house, in front of my neighbors. It was incredibly humiliating,” Armstrong complained in May 2022, footage played Thursday at an Austin courthouse.
Armstrong’s former partner Colin Strickland, left, had previously admitted that he had indeed had an affair with Moriah Wilson, pictured right
Detective Katy Connor, who interviewed Armstrong in May 2022, also explained how the alleged murderer had asked for the police interrogation to end shortly afterwards.
She was allowed to leave, but was warned by police that her unwillingness to cooperate could cause future problems.
Detective Connor also told the court that questioning Armstrong about the murder raised her suspicions about her involvement.
Armstrong’s black Jeep Grand Cherokee was spotted driving near Wilson’s home the day she died.
Connor told the court: ‘When I confront her about the vehicle being in the area she does not deny it.
‘She doesn’t explain why her car is there. She admits it doesn’t look good. All this together aroused my suspicions.’
During Thursday’s trial, Imir Perez of the US Marshals also told how he tracked Armstrong down to Costa Rica after she went on the run.
He found her with a bandage around her nose, and during the investigation a receipt from a local plastic surgery clinic for more than $6,000 was also discovered.
Armstrong was arrested at a hostel in Costa Rica after being wanted by authorities in the US. She is seen here before she was deported
Armstrong’s 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee was spotted driving outside Wilson’s friend’s home in Austin, where the cyclist was killed
On Wednesday, Detective Richard Spitler also testified in court that Armstrong had investigated whether pineapple could be used to remove fingerprints.
The detective also told the court that Armstrong sold her black Jeep Grand Cherokee less than 48 hours after Wilson was killed.
Less than 48 hours after the killing, Armstrong sold her black Jeep Grand Cherokee at Carmax in Austin, police testified.
She created a brand new email account and received an offer of $12,200 for the vehicle from Carmax.
Three days after the murder, Armstrong took an Uber to the Austin airport, where she took a Southwest Airlines flight from Austin to New York’s LaGuardia Airport.
Nicole Mertz, a close friend of Armstrong’s, testified that she said she would “kill” another woman if her boyfriend went out with them.
Mertz told the court that Armstrong had recently broken up with her boyfriend Colin Strickland and that Moriah Wilson was in town to visit him in November 2021.
The two had agreed to meet at a café, and Wilson also showed up, which, according to Mertz, made Armstrong “quite angry, almost visibly angry.”
Mertz then asked her what she would do if Strickland ever dated someone, to which the suspect replied, “I would kill her.”
Armstrong is seen here arriving at the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston as she was brought back from Costa Rica
Nicole Mertz, pictured here, testified at Armstrong’s trial earlier this afternoon, saying the two had met at a cafe in Austin when Armstrong made the comment
Austin police detective Richard Spitler will appear Wednesday during the Texas trial of Kaitlin Armstrong
Mertz later called police and told them what she knew and tried to contact Armstrong, who had gone radio silent.
She said, “I just had a feeling. I remember that comment she made and I knew she wasn’t happy about Colin and Moriah hanging out. I just had a feeling and thought it was the right thing to do.”
Last week, Strickland told the court he was afraid of entering into a long-term relationship with Armstrong.
Armstrong, he said, routinely blocked other women’s phone numbers in his phone behind his back. Wilson was one of them, he said.
On the day of the murder, while swimming with Wilson, Strickland told Armstrong that he had gone to drop off flowers at a friend’s house.
Last week, jurors were shown Ring surveillance camera footage from a neighbor in which Wilson could be heard screaming. Three gunshots were heard.
Colin Strickland storms out of the Travis County Courthouse after testifying against his ex, Kaitlin Armstrong
Prosecutors say Armstrong, using a gun Strickland bought for her, shot Wilson twice in the head and once in the heart.
She is then believed to have fled the apartment on Wilson’s bicycle, which was dumped in the bushes behind her apartment.
Armstrong fled Texas after an initial police interrogation. She then flew to Costa Rica, where she said she only taught yoga.
She was eventually arrested in July and returned to Austin. A few weeks before her trial began, she tried to flee again during a visit to a doctor’s office.
In Costa Rica, she posed as a woman named ‘Ari’ while staying at Don Jon’s Lodge in the small town of Santa Teresa, where only 3,000 people live.
Fellow guests described her as a “strange” loner who “kept to herself” despite sleeping in a dormitory with eight bunk beds.