Ex-mistress testifies she hates Caleb Flynn, believes he murdered his wife

Alleigha Botner, 24, told an Ohio court she now hates former American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn, whom she believes killed his wife Ashley Flynn in February.

Ex-mistress takes the stand: "I believe he murdered his wife"

Alleigha Botner, 24, testified in an Ohio courtroom on Wednesday that her feelings toward former American Idol contestant Caleb Flynn have turned to hatred since his arrest, nypost.com reports.

"I hate him," Botner told the court, according to CNN. "When we were in our relationship, I thought I was in love." Asked why her feelings had shifted, she was direct: "Because I believe that he murdered his wife."

Flynn, 40, has been charged with fatally shooting his wife, Ashley Flynn, at their Ohio home in February and then staging the crime scene to conceal the killing. He has pleaded not guilty and claims an unnamed intruder was responsible.

Affair began at a church

Botner said she first encountered Flynn when she was 21 and working as an intern at a local church. She had been serving as worship leader at Christian Life Center in Dayton — the same church where Flynn held a position as music pastor. According to churchleaders.com, she resigned shortly after his arrest.

The relationship turned romantic in March 2024, she testified, and the two ended things in December 2025. Botner described how Flynn gradually drew her in: "It started with small things. He would ask to come over to just hug me," she told the court, per The Dayton Daily News.

Flynn told her his marriage was effectively over, claiming his wife had been unfaithful two years earlier and that they were only living together as roommates. "He told me he hates her. He told me he only was with her because of the girls," Botner said, referring to Flynn's daughters.

She testified that his language about Ashley Flynn grew increasingly hostile. "He would say that he hated her, that he wanted her dead. He would say so many awful things along the lines about hating her." Flynn allegedly insisted his wife was not "worthy of being called by her name" and used a degrading nickname for her, along with other abusive terms.

Missing devices and a fatal morning

During cross-examination, Botner acknowledged that her cellphone and laptop had both disappeared in the weeks before Ashley Flynn's death. She offered explanations for each: the phone fell into water during a kayaking trip to Florida, and the laptop was left behind on a plane. "Anyone who knows me knows I lose things," she said.

The night before the killing, Botner testified that she had sent Flynn screenshots about how divorce proceedings function when an affair has been documented. "He was worried about custody of the kids. I was sending him those screenshots about custody," she said.

Flynn responded with a message prosecutors say reads "actions will come tomorrow" — which Botner said she interpreted as a reference to filing for divorce. In a separate message, he wrote: "I choose you. I will be free."

Botner said she learned of Ashley Flynn's death through a news article forwarded to her by a fellow church member. "My heart started pounding. In my mind it just seemed like too much of a coincidence that the day he's divorcing her, she's dead," she testified.

Prosecutors have pointed to the affair with Botner as a central motive in the case. Flynn maintains his innocence.

Source: Google News MT — Crime (en)