“American Idol” alum and ex-church pastor Caleb Flynn sobbed in court as the jury found him guilty of heinously murdering his wife while she slept in their bed, so he could plan a future with his much-younger mistress, an Ohio jury decided Tuesday.
The 40-year-old husband and father of two preteen daughters staged a phony break-in at their Tipp City home as a cover for fatally shooting his wife, Ashley, on Feb. 16, the jury in Miami County concluded after deliberating for 2.5 hours.
A blubbering Flynn fought to keep his composure but tears filled his eyes as he wept while the judge read guilty verdicts for all 11 counts against him, which included tampering with evidence and other related crimes, in addition to aggravated murder — which could land him in prison without the possibility of parole.
“He made a choice. Ashley lost her life,” Ohio Prosecutor Paul Watkins told jurors during closing arguments Tuesday.
Flynn staged the crime scene to make it look like a home invader broke into the couple’s house, and shot his 37-year-old wife while he and his two daughters were asleep, prosecutors argued in court.
Ashley was shot with a 9mm pistol, but the murder weapon was never recovered. Meanwhile, Flynn’s own 9mm pistol was missing from his truck, where he normally kept it.
Flynn hatched the horrific scheme after a yearslong affair with with Alleigha Botner, 24, whom he met in 2022 while she was a 20-year-old intern at the church where he served as a music pastor, prosecutors said.
Prosecutors unveiled a trove of more than 100,000 text messages between the lovers. Botner was forced to read messages in court in which Flynn told her he wanted his wife dead and was pondering how to get away with killing her.
Hours before the murder, Flynn allegedly texted her: “I choose you. I’m free. Actions will come tomorrow.”
Follow the latest on the murder trial of former “American Idol” contestant Caleb Flynn:
Flynn’s lawyers countered that the state had proven he was an adulterous husband who hated his wife — but that didn’t make him a murderer.
“This is a murder case, and it’s really nothing more,” said defense attorney Patrick Mulligan, stressing that investigators never recovered the murder weapon and lacked forensic evidence, eyewitness testimony or other direct proof that he was the one who killed his wife.
Flynn, who appeared on the competitive singing show, “American Idol” in 2013, gushed on TV at the time about how much he loved his wife, who was a teacher and volleyball coach. Sentencing has been set for Oct. 5.
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