▲ Caleb Flyn
Caleb Flyn, 40, who gained public recognition through the U.S. audition program "American Idol," has been found guilty of murdering his wife.
According to broadcasters such as ABC and CNN, a jury in an Ohio court of first instance accepted the prosecution's argument on September 29 (local time) that Flyn shot and killed his wife and staged the crime scene to make it look like an intruder committed the crime.
Consequently, he was found guilty on all nine charges, including murder, felonious assault, and tampering with evidence.
Flyn, a former music pastor who appeared on "American Idol" in 2013, was indicted for the murder of his wife, Ashley Flyn, at their home in Tipp City on February 16.
At the time of the incident, Flyn called 911 and claimed that an intruder had broken in and shot his wife while he was lying in his daughters' room.
However, police found no traces of an intruder and noted that the situation differed from typical break-in patterns.
Flyn's electronic devices recorded about 200 steps of movement at 1:30 a.m., an hour before the emergency call, and an additional 346 steps around the time of the call.
Ashley's father, Todd Smith, raised doubts, saying, "Why would someone break in, shoot my daughter, and just run away? If it were a robbery, wouldn't they have ransacked the house?"
Suspicion further intensified when messages Flyn sent to 24-year-old mistress Alia Bottner, whom he met at church and dated for nearly two years, were made public.
It was confirmed that Flyn had sent messages to Bottner last year such as, "I wish my wife was dead and gone," and "I cried all night thinking about how to kill my wife and not go to prison."
Last August, Ashley discovered the relationship between the two and Bottner demanded a divorce, but Flyn refused, citing that they had two daughters and that he worked with his in-laws' family.
The prosecution argued that Flyn plotted the murder to maintain his extramarital affair, custody of his daughters, his high salary at his in-laws' business, and his reputation within the church.
Following the jury verdict, Flyn faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
The sentencing hearing is scheduled for October 5.
(Photo: AP-Yonhap News)
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